Proximity-based prioritization of uplink and downlink positioning resources

ABSTRACT

Disclosed are various techniques for wireless communication. In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) may receive, from a network entity, first information identifying positioning reference signal (PRS) resources. The UE may receive, from a base station, second information identifying sounding reference signal (SRS) resources. The UE may select, from PRS resources identified by the first information, PRS resources that satisfy a PRS-SRS proximity requirement with regard to at least one SRS resource identified by the second information. The UE may use the selected PRS resources at least for performing UE Rx-Tx measurements. In another aspect, a network entity may transmit, to a UE, first information identifying PRS resources. The network entity may transmit, to the UE, second information specifying a number of PRS resources to be used by the UE at least for performing UE Rx-Tx measurements.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application for patent claims priority to Indian PatentApplication No. 202021045013, entitled “PROXIMITY-BASED PRIORITIZATIONOF UPLINK AND DOWNLINK POSITIONING RESOURCES,” filed Oct. 15, 2020, andInternational Patent Application No. PCT/US2021/071790, entitled“PROXIMITY-BASED PRIORITIZATION OF UPLINK AND DOWNLINK POSITIONINGRESOURCES,” filed Oct. 8, 2021, both of which are assigned to theassignee hereof and are expressly incorporated herein by reference intheir entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE 1. Field of the Disclosure

Aspects of the disclosure relate generally to wireless positioning.

2. Description of the Related Art

Wireless communication systems have developed through variousgenerations, including a first-generation analog wireless phone service(1G), a second-generation (2G) digital wireless phone service (includinginterim 2.5G and 2.75G networks), a third-generation (3G) high speeddata, Internet-capable wireless service and a fourth-generation (4G)service (e.g., Long Term Evolution (LTE) or WiMax). There are presentlymany different types of wireless communication systems in use, includingcellular and personal communications service (PCS) systems. Examples ofknown cellular systems include the cellular analog advanced mobile phonesystem (AMPS), and digital cellular systems based on code divisionmultiple access (CDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), timedivision multiple access (TDMA), the Global System for Mobilecommunication (GSM), etc.

A fifth generation (5G) wireless standard, referred to as New Radio(NR), calls for higher data transfer speeds, greater numbers ofconnections, and better coverage, among other improvements. The 5Gstandard, according to the Next Generation Mobile Networks Alliance, isdesigned to provide data rates of several tens of megabits per second toeach of tens of thousands of users, with 1 gigabit per second to tens ofworkers on an office floor. Several hundreds of thousands ofsimultaneous connections should be supported in order to support largesensor deployments. Consequently, the spectral efficiency of 5G mobilecommunications should be significantly enhanced compared to the current4G standard. Furthermore, signaling efficiencies should be enhanced andlatency should be substantially reduced compared to current standards.

SUMMARY

The following presents a simplified summary relating to one or moreaspects disclosed herein. Thus, the following summary should not beconsidered an extensive overview relating to all contemplated aspects,nor should the following summary be considered to identify key orcritical elements relating to all contemplated aspects or to delineatethe scope associated with any particular aspect. Accordingly, thefollowing summary has the sole purpose to present certain conceptsrelating to one or more aspects relating to the mechanisms disclosedherein in a simplified form to precede the detailed descriptionpresented below.

In an aspect, a method of wireless communication performed by a userequipment (UE) includes receiving, from a network entity, firstinformation identifying positioning reference signal (PRS) resources;receiving, from a base station, second information identifying soundingreference signal (SRS) resources; selecting, from PRS resourcesidentified by the first information, PRS resources that satisfy aPRS-SRS proximity requirement with regard to at least one SRS resourceidentified by the second information; and using the selected PRSresources at least for performing UE Rx-Tx measurements.

In an aspect, a method of wireless communication performed by a networkentity includes transmitting, to a user equipment (UE), firstinformation identifying positioning reference signal (PRS) resources;and transmitting, to the UE, second information specifying a number ofPRS resources to be used by the UE at least for performing UE Rx-Txmeasurements.

In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes a memory; at least onetransceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to thememory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processorconfigured to: receive, via the at least one transceiver, from a networkentity, first information identifying positioning reference signal (PRS)resources; receive, via the at least one transceiver, from a basestation, second information identifying sounding reference signal (SRS)resources; select, from PRS resources identified by the firstinformation, PRS resources that satisfy a PRS-SRS proximity requirementwith regard to at least one SRS resource identified by the secondinformation; and use the selected PRS resources at least for performingUE Rx-Tx measurements.

In an aspect, a network entity includes a memory; at least onetransceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to thememory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processorconfigured to: transmit, via the at least one transceiver, to a userequipment (UE), first information identifying positioning referencesignal (PRS) resources; and transmit, via the at least one transceiver,to the UE, second information specifying a number of PRS resources to beused by the UE at least for performing UE Rx-Tx measurements.

Other objects and advantages associated with the aspects disclosedherein will be apparent to those skilled in the art based on theaccompanying drawings and detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings are presented to aid in the description ofexamples of one or more aspects of the disclosed subject matter and areprovided solely for illustration of the examples and not limitationthereof:

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary wireless communications system,according to various aspects.

FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrate example wireless network structures,according to various aspects.

FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C are simplified block diagrams of several sampleaspects of components that may be employed in a user equipment (UE), abase station, and a network entity, respectively, and configured tosupport communications as taught herein.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are diagrams illustrating example frame structures andchannels within the frame structures, according to aspects of thedisclosure.

FIG. 5 shows an example scenario in which PRS occasions have a differentperiod than SRS occasions.

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary method of proximity-based prioritizationof UL and DL positioning resources according to aspects of thedisclosure.

FIG. 7A, FIG. 7B, FIG. 7C, FIG. 7D, and FIG. 7E are flowcharts showingportions of an example process associated with proximity-basedprioritization of uplink and downlink positioning resources according toaspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of another example process associated withproximity-based prioritization of uplink and downlink positioningresources according to aspects of the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Aspects of the disclosure are provided in the following description andrelated drawings directed to various examples provided for illustrationpurposes. Alternate aspects may be devised without departing from thescope of the disclosure. Additionally, well-known elements of thedisclosure will not be described in detail or will be omitted so as notto obscure the relevant details of the disclosure.

To overcome the technical disadvantages of conventional systems andmethods described above, mechanisms by which the bandwidth used by auser equipment (UE) for positioning reference signal (PRS) can bedynamically adjusted, e.g., response to environmental conditions, arepresented. For example, a UE receiver may indicate to a transmittingentity a condition of the environment in which the UE is operating, andin response the transmitting entity may adjust the PRS bandwidth.

The words “exemplary” and “example” are used herein to mean “serving asan example, instance, or illustration.” Any aspect described herein as“exemplary” or “example” is not necessarily to be construed as preferredor advantageous over other aspects. Likewise, the term “aspects of thedisclosure” does not require that all aspects of the disclosure includethe discussed feature, advantage or mode of operation.

Those of skill in the art will appreciate that the information andsignals described below may be represented using any of a variety ofdifferent technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions,commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may bereferenced throughout the description below may be represented byvoltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles,optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof, depending inpart on the particular application, in part on the desired design, inpart on the corresponding technology, etc.

Further, many aspects are described in terms of sequences of actions tobe performed by, for example, elements of a computing device. It will berecognized that various actions described herein can be performed byspecific circuits (e.g., application specific integrated circuits(ASICs)), by program instructions being executed by one or moreprocessors, or by a combination of both. Additionally, the sequence(s)of actions described herein can be considered to be embodied entirelywithin any form of non-transitory computer-readable storage mediumhaving stored therein a corresponding set of computer instructions that,upon execution, would cause or instruct an associated processor of adevice to perform the functionality described herein. Thus, the variousaspects of the disclosure may be embodied in a number of differentforms, all of which have been contemplated to be within the scope of theclaimed subject matter. In addition, for each of the aspects describedherein, the corresponding form of any such aspects may be describedherein as, for example, “logic configured to” perform the describedaction.

As used herein, the terms “user equipment” (UE) and “base station” arenot intended to be specific or otherwise limited to any particular radioaccess technology (RAT), unless otherwise noted. In general, a UE may beany wireless communication device (e.g., a mobile phone, router, tabletcomputer, laptop computer, tracking device, wearable (e.g., smartwatch,glasses, augmented reality (AR)/virtual reality (VR) headset, etc.),vehicle (e.g., automobile, motorcycle, bicycle, etc.), Internet ofThings (IoT) device, etc.) used by a user to communicate over a wirelesscommunications network. A UE may be mobile or may (e.g., at certaintimes) be stationary, and may communicate with a radio access network(RAN). As used herein, the term “UE” may be referred to interchangeablyas an “access terminal” or “AT,” a “client device,” a “wireless device,”a “subscriber device,” a “subscriber terminal,” a “subscriber station,”a “user terminal” (UT), a “mobile device,” a “mobile terminal,” a“mobile station,” or variations thereof. Generally, UEs can communicatewith a core network via a RAN, and through the core network the UEs canbe connected with external networks such as the Internet and with otherUEs. Of course, other mechanisms of connecting to the core network, tothe Internet, or to both are also possible for the UEs, such as overwired access networks, wireless local area network (WLAN) networks(e.g., based on IEEE 802.11, etc.) and so on.

A base station may operate according to one of several RATs incommunication with UEs depending on the network in which it is deployed,and may be alternatively referred to as an access point (AP), a networknode, a NodeB, an evolved NodeB (eNB), a next generation eNB (ng-eNB), aNew Radio (NR) Node B (also referred to as a gNB or gNodeB), etc. A basestation may be used primarily to support wireless access by UEs,including supporting data, voice, signaling connections, or variouscombinations thereof for the supported UEs. In some systems a basestation may provide purely edge node signaling functions while in othersystems it may provide additional control functions, network managementfunctions, or both. A communication link through which UEs can sendsignals to a base station is called an uplink (UL) channel (e.g., areverse traffic channel, a reverse control channel, an access channel,etc.). A communication link through which the base station can sendsignals to UEs is called a downlink (DL) or forward link channel (e.g.,a paging channel, a control channel, a broadcast channel, a forwardtraffic channel, etc.). As used herein the term traffic channel (TCH)can refer to either an uplink/reverse or downlink/forward trafficchannel.

The term “base station” may refer to a single physicaltransmission-reception point (TRP) or to multiple physical TRPs that mayor may not be co-located. For example, where the term “base station”refers to a single physical TRP, the physical TRP may be an antenna ofthe base station corresponding to a cell (or several cell sectors) ofthe base station. Where the term “base station” refers to multipleco-located physical TRPs, the physical TRPs may be an array of antennas(e.g., as in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) system or where thebase station employs beamforming) of the base station. Where the term“base station” refers to multiple non-co-located physical TRPs, thephysical TRPs may be a distributed antenna system (DAS) (a network ofspatially separated antennas connected to a common source via atransport medium) or a remote radio head (RRH) (a remote base stationconnected to a serving base station). Alternatively, the non-co-locatedphysical TRPs may be the serving base station receiving the measurementreport from the UE and a neighbor base station whose reference radiofrequency (RF) signals (or simply “reference signals”) the UE ismeasuring. Because a TRP is the point from which a base stationtransmits and receives wireless signals, as used herein, references totransmission from or reception at a base station are to be understood asreferring to a particular TRP of the base station.

In some implementations that support positioning of UEs, a base stationmay not support wireless access by UEs (e.g., may not support data,voice, signaling connections, or various combinations thereof for UEs),but may instead transmit reference signals to UEs to be measured by theUEs, may receive and measure signals transmitted by the UEs, or both.Such a base station may be referred to as a positioning beacon (e.g.,when transmitting signals to UEs), as a location measurement unit (e.g.,when receiving and measuring signals from UEs), or both.

An “RF signal” comprises an electromagnetic wave of a given frequencythat transports information through the space between a transmitter anda receiver. As used herein, a transmitter may transmit a single “RFsignal” or multiple “RF signals” to a receiver. However, the receivermay receive multiple “RF signals” corresponding to each transmitted RFsignal due to the propagation characteristics of RF signals throughmultipath channels. The same transmitted RF signal on different pathsbetween the transmitter and receiver may be referred to as a “multipath”RF signal. As used herein, an RF signal may also be referred to as a“wireless signal” or simply a “signal” where it is clear from thecontext that the term “signal” refers to a wireless signal or an RFsignal.

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary wireless communications system 100according to various aspects. The wireless communications system 100(which may also be referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN))may include various base stations 102 and various UEs 104. The basestations 102 may include macro cell base stations (high power cellularbase stations), small cell base stations (low power cellular basestations), or both. In an aspect, the macro cell base station mayinclude eNBs, ng-eNBs, or both, where the wireless communications system100 corresponds to an LTE network, or gNBs where the wirelesscommunications system 100 corresponds to a NR network, or a combinationof both, and the small cell base stations may include femtocells,picocells, microcells, etc.

The base stations 102 may collectively form a radio access network (RAN)and interface with a core network 108 (e.g., an evolved packet core(EPC) or a 5G core (5GC)) through backhaul links 110, and through thecore network 108 to one or more location servers 112 (which may be partof core network 108 or may be external to core network 108). In additionto other functions, the base stations 102 may perform functions thatrelate to one or more of transferring user data, radio channel cipheringand deciphering, integrity protection, header compression, mobilitycontrol functions (e.g., handover, dual connectivity), inter-cellinterference coordination, connection setup and release, load balancing,distribution for non-access stratum (NAS) messages, NAS node selection,synchronization, RAN sharing, multimedia broadcast multicast service(MBMS), subscriber and equipment trace, RAN information management(RIM), paging, positioning, and delivery of warning messages. The basestations 102 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly(e.g., through the EPC/5GC) over backhaul links 114, which may be wiredor wireless.

The base stations 102 may wirelessly communicate with the UEs 104. Eachof the base stations 102 may provide communication coverage for arespective geographic coverage area 116. In an aspect, one or more cellsmay be supported by a base station 102 in each geographic coverage area116. A “cell” is a logical communication entity used for communicationwith a base station (e.g., over some frequency resource, referred to asa carrier frequency, component carrier, carrier, band, or the like), andmay be associated with an identifier (e.g., a physical cell identifier(PCI), a virtual cell identifier (VCI), a cell global identifier (CGI))for distinguishing cells operating via the same or a different carrierfrequency. In some cases, different cells may be configured according todifferent protocol types (e.g., machine-type communication (MTC),narrowband IoT (NB-IoT), enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), or others)that may provide access for different types of UEs. Because a cell issupported by a specific base station, the term “cell” may refer toeither or both of the logical communication entity and the base stationthat supports it, depending on the context. In addition, because a TRPis typically the physical transmission point of a cell, the terms “cell”and “TRP” may be used interchangeably. In some cases, the term “cell”may also refer to a geographic coverage area of a base station (e.g., asector), insofar as a carrier frequency can be detected and used forcommunication within some portion of geographic coverage areas 116.

While neighboring macro cell base station 102 geographic coverage areas116 may partially overlap (e.g., in a handover region), some of thegeographic coverage areas 116 may be substantially overlapped by alarger geographic coverage area 116. For example, a small cell basestation 102′ may have a coverage area 116′ that substantially overlapswith the geographic coverage area 116 of one or more macro cell basestations 102. A network that includes both small cell and macro cellbase stations may be known as a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneousnetwork may also include home eNBs (HeNBs), which may provide service toa restricted group known as a closed subscriber group (CSG).

The communication links 118 between the base stations 102 and the UEs104 may include uplink (also referred to as reverse link) transmissionsfrom a UE 104 to a base station 102, downlink (also referred to asforward link) transmissions from a base station 102 to a UE 104, orboth. The communication links 118 may use MIMO antenna technology,including spatial multiplexing, beamforming, transmit diversity, orvarious combinations thereof. The communication links 118 may be throughone or more carrier frequencies. Allocation of carriers may beasymmetric with respect to downlink and uplink (e.g., more or lesscarriers may be allocated for downlink than for uplink).

The wireless communications system 100 may further include a wirelesslocal area network (WLAN) access point (AP) 120 in communication withWLAN stations (STAs) 122 via communication links 124 in an unlicensedfrequency spectrum (e.g., 5 GHz). When communicating in an unlicensedfrequency spectrum, the WLAN STAs 122, the WLAN AP 120, or variouscombinations thereof may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) orlisten-before-talk (LBT) procedure prior to communicating in order todetermine whether the channel is available.

The small cell base station 102′ may operate in a licensed, anunlicensed frequency spectrum, or both. When operating in an unlicensedfrequency spectrum, the small cell base station 102′ may employ LTE orNR technology and use the same 5 GHz unlicensed frequency spectrum asused by the WLAN AP 120. The small cell base station 102′, employingLTE/5G in an unlicensed frequency spectrum, may boost coverage to theaccess network, increase capacity of the access network, or both. NR inunlicensed spectrum may be referred to as NR-U. LTE in an unlicensedspectrum may be referred to as LTE-U, licensed assisted access (LAA), orMulteFire.

The wireless communications system 100 may further include a millimeterwave (mmW) base station 126 that may operate in mmW frequencies, in nearmmW frequencies, or combinations thereof in communication with a UE 128.Extremely high frequency (EHF) is part of the RF in the electromagneticspectrum. EHF has a range of 30 GHz to 300 GHz and a wavelength between1 millimeter and 10 millimeters. Radio waves in this band may bereferred to as a millimeter wave. Near mmW may extend down to afrequency of 3 GHz with a wavelength of 100 millimeters. The super highfrequency (SHF) band extends between 3 GHz and 30 GHz, also referred toas centimeter wave. Communications using the mmW/near mmW radiofrequency band have high path loss and a relatively short range. The mmWbase station 126 and the UE 128 may utilize beamforming (transmit,receive, or both) over a mmW communication link 130 to compensate forthe extremely high path loss and short range. Further, it will beappreciated that in alternative configurations, one or more basestations 102 may also transmit using mmW or near mmW and beamforming.Accordingly, it will be appreciated that the foregoing illustrations aremerely examples and should not be construed to limit the various aspectsdisclosed herein.

Transmit beamforming is a technique for focusing an RF signal in aspecific direction. Traditionally, when a network node (e.g., a basestation) broadcasts an RF signal, it broadcasts the signal in alldirections (omni-directionally). With transmit beamforming, the networknode determines where a given target device (e.g., a UE) is located(relative to the transmitting network node) and projects a strongerdownlink RF signal in that specific direction, thereby providing afaster (in terms of data rate) and stronger RF signal for the receivingdevice(s). To change the directionality of the RF signal whentransmitting, a network node can control the phase and relativeamplitude of the RF signal at each of the one or more transmitters thatare broadcasting the RF signal. For example, a network node may use anarray of antennas (referred to as a “phased array” or an “antennaarray”) that creates a beam of RF waves that can be “steered” to pointin different directions, without actually moving the antennas.Specifically, the RF current from the transmitter is fed to theindividual antennas with the correct phase relationship so that theradio waves from the separate antennas add together to increase theradiation in a desired direction, while canceling to suppress radiationin undesired directions.

Transmit beams may be quasi-collocated, meaning that they appear to thereceiver (e.g., a UE) as having the same parameters, regardless ofwhether or not the transmitting antennas of the network node themselvesare physically collocated. In NR, there are four types ofquasi-collocation (QCL) relations. Specifically, a QCL relation of agiven type means that certain parameters about a second reference RFsignal on a second beam can be derived from information about a sourcereference RF signal on a source beam. Thus, if the source reference RFsignal is QCL Type A, the receiver can use the source reference RFsignal to estimate the Doppler shift, Doppler spread, average delay, anddelay spread of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the samechannel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL Type B, the receivercan use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift andDoppler spread of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the samechannel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL Type C, the receivercan use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift andaverage delay of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the samechannel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL Type D, the receivercan use the source reference RF signal to estimate the spatial receiveparameter of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the samechannel.

In receive beamforming, the receiver uses a receive beam to amplify RFsignals detected on a given channel. For example, the receiver canincrease the gain setting, adjust the phase setting, or combinationsthereof, of an array of antennas in a particular direction to amplify(e.g., to increase the gain level of) the RF signals received from thatdirection. Thus, when a receiver is said to beamform in a certaindirection, it means the beam gain in that direction is high relative tothe beam gain along other directions, or the beam gain in that directionis the highest compared to the beam gain in that direction of all otherreceive beams available to the receiver. This results in a strongerreceived signal strength (e.g., reference signal received power (RSRP),reference signal received quality (RSRQ),signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR), etc.) of the RF signalsreceived from that direction.

Receive beams may be spatially related. A spatial relation means thatparameters for a transmit beam for a second reference signal can bederived from information about a receive beam for a first referencesignal. For example, a UE may use a particular receive beam to receiveone or more reference downlink reference signals (e.g., positioningreference signals (PRS), narrowband reference signals (NRS) trackingreference signals (TRS), phase tracking reference signal (PTRS),cell-specific reference signals (CRS), channel state informationreference signals (CSI-RS), primary synchronization signals (PSS),secondary synchronization signals (SSS), synchronization signal blocks(SSBs), etc.) from a base station. The UE can then form a transmit beamfor sending one or more uplink reference signals (e.g., uplinkpositioning reference signals (UL-PRS), sounding reference signal (SRS),demodulation reference signals (DMRS), PTRS, etc.) to that base stationbased on the parameters of the receive beam.

Note that a “downlink” beam may be either a transmit beam or a receivebeam, depending on the entity forming it. For example, if a base stationis forming the downlink beam to transmit a reference signal to a UE, thedownlink beam is a transmit beam. If the UE is forming the downlinkbeam, however, it is a receive beam to receive the downlink referencesignal. Similarly, an “uplink” beam may be either a transmit beam or areceive beam, depending on the entity forming it. For example, if a basestation is forming the uplink beam, it is an uplink receive beam, and ifa UE is forming the uplink beam, it is an uplink transmit beam.

In 5G, the frequency spectrum in which wireless nodes (e.g., basestations 102/126, UEs 104/128) operate is divided into multiplefrequency ranges, FR1 (from 450 to 6000 MHz), FR2 (from 24250 to 52600MHz), FR3 (above 52600 MHz), and FR4 (between FR1 and FR2). In amulti-carrier system, such as 5G, one of the carrier frequencies isreferred to as the “primary carrier” or “anchor carrier” or “primaryserving cell” or “PCell,” and the remaining carrier frequencies arereferred to as “secondary carriers” or “secondary serving cells” or“SCells.” In carrier aggregation, the anchor carrier is the carrieroperating on the primary frequency (e.g., FR1) utilized by a UE 104/128and the cell in which the UE 104/128 either performs the initial radioresource control (RRC) connection establishment procedure or initiatesthe RRC connection re-establishment procedure. The primary carriercarries all common and UE-specific control channels and may be a carrierin a licensed frequency (however, this is not always the case). Asecondary carrier is a carrier operating on a second frequency (e.g.,FR2) that may be configured once the RRC connection is establishedbetween the UE 104 and the anchor carrier and that may be used toprovide additional radio resources. In some cases, the secondary carriermay be a carrier in an unlicensed frequency. The secondary carrier maycontain only necessary signaling information and signals, for example,those that are UE-specific may not be present in the secondary carrier,since both primary uplink and downlink carriers are typicallyUE-specific. This means that different UEs 104/128 in a cell may havedifferent downlink primary carriers. The same is true for the uplinkprimary carriers. The network is able to change the primary carrier ofany UE 104/128 at any time. This is done, for example, to balance theload on different carriers. Because a “serving cell” (whether a PCell oran SCell) corresponds to a carrier frequency/component carrier overwhich some base station is communicating, the term “cell,” “servingcell,” “component carrier,” “carrier frequency,” and the like can beused interchangeably.

For example, still referring to FIG. 1 , one of the frequencies utilizedby the macro cell base stations 102 may be an anchor carrier (or“PCell”) and other frequencies utilized by the macro cell base stations102, the mmW base station 126, or combinations thereof may be secondarycarriers (“SCells”). The simultaneous transmission, reception, or bothof multiple carriers enables the UE 104/128 to significantly increaseits data transmission rates, reception rates, or both. For example, two20 MHz aggregated carriers in a multi-carrier system would theoreticallylead to a two-fold increase in data rate (i.e., 40 MHz), compared tothat attained by a single 20 MHz carrier.

The wireless communications system 100 may further include one or moreUEs, such as UE 132, that connects indirectly to one or morecommunication networks via one or more device-to-device (D2D)peer-to-peer (P2P) links (referred to as “sidelinks”). In the example ofFIG. 1 , UE 132 has a D2D P2P link 134 with one of the UEs 104 connectedto one of the base stations 102 (e.g., through which UE 132 mayindirectly obtain cellular connectivity) and a D2D P2P link 194 withWLAN STA 122 connected to the WLAN AP 120 (through which UE 132 mayindirectly obtain WLAN-based Internet connectivity). In an example, D2DP2P link 134 and D2D P2P link 136 may be supported with any well-knownD2D RAT, such as LTE Direct (LTE-D), WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Bluetooth®,and so on.

The wireless communications system 100 may further include a UE 138 thatmay communicate with a macro cell base station 102 over a communicationlink 118, with the mmW base station 126 over a mmW communication link130, or combinations thereof. For example, the macro cell base station102 may support a PCell and one or more SCells for the UE 138 and themmW base station 126 may support one or more SCells for the UE 138.

FIG. 2A illustrates an example wireless network structure 200 accordingto various aspects. For example, a 5GC 210 (also referred to as a NextGeneration Core (NGC)) can be viewed functionally as control planefunctions 214 (e.g., UE registration, authentication, network access,gateway selection, etc.) and user plane functions 212, (e.g., UE gatewayfunction, access to data networks, IP routing, etc.) which operatecooperatively to form the core network. User plane interface (NG-U) 213and control plane interface (NG-C) 215 connect the gNB 222 to the 5GC210 and specifically to the control plane functions 214 and user planefunctions 212. In an additional configuration, an ng-eNB 224 may also beconnected to the 5GC 210 via NG-C 215 to the control plane functions 214and NG-U 213 to user plane functions 212. Further, ng-eNB 224 maydirectly communicate with gNB 222 via a backhaul connection 223. In someconfigurations, the New RAN 220 may only have one or more gNBs 222,while other configurations include one or more of both ng-eNBs 224 andgNBs 222. Either gNB 222 or ng-eNB 224 may communicate with UEs 204(e.g., any of the UEs depicted in FIG. 1 ). Another optional aspect mayinclude a location server 112, which may be in communication with the5GC 210 to provide location assistance for UEs 204. The location server112 can be implemented as a plurality of separate servers (e.g.,physically separate servers, different software modules on a singleserver, different software modules spread across multiple physicalservers, etc.), or alternately may each correspond to a single server.The location server 112 can be configured to support one or morelocation services for UEs 204 that can connect to the location server112 via the core network, 5GC 210, via the Internet (not illustrated),or via both. Further, the location server 112 may be integrated into acomponent of the core network, or alternatively may be external to thecore network.

FIG. 2B illustrates another example wireless network structure 250according to various aspects. For example, a 5GC 260 can be viewedfunctionally as control plane functions, provided by an access andmobility management function (AMF) 264, and user plane functions,provided by a user plane function (UPF) 262, which operate cooperativelyto form the core network (i.e., 5GC 260). User plane interface 263 andcontrol plane interface 265 connect the ng-eNB 224 to the 5GC 260 andspecifically to UPF 262 and AMF 264, respectively. In an additionalconfiguration, a gNB 222 may also be connected to the 5GC 260 viacontrol plane interface 265 to AMF 264 and user plane interface 263 toUPF 262. Further, ng-eNB 224 may directly communicate with gNB 222 viathe backhaul connection 223, with or without gNB direct connectivity tothe 5GC 260. In some configurations, the New RAN 220 may only have oneor more gNBs 222, while other configurations include one or more of bothng-eNBs 224 and gNBs 222. Either gNB 222 or ng-eNB 224 may communicatewith UEs 204 (e.g., any of the UEs depicted in FIG. 1 ). The basestations of the New RAN 220 communicate with the AMF 264 over the N2interface and with the UPF 262 over the N3 interface.

The functions of the AMF 264 include registration management, connectionmanagement, reachability management, mobility management, lawfulinterception, transport for session management (SM) messages between theUE 204 and a session management function (SMF) 266, transparent proxyservices for routing SM messages, access authentication and accessauthorization, transport for short message service (SMS) messagesbetween the UE 204 and the short message service function (SMSF) (notshown), and security anchor functionality (SEAF). The AMF 264 alsointeracts with an authentication server function (AUSF) (not shown) andthe UE 204, and receives the intermediate key that was established as aresult of the UE 204 authentication process. In the case ofauthentication based on a UMTS (universal mobile telecommunicationssystem) subscriber identity module (USIM), the AMF 264 retrieves thesecurity material from the AUSF. The functions of the AMF 264 alsoinclude security context management (SCM). The SCM receives a key fromthe SEAF that it uses to derive access-network specific keys. Thefunctionality of the AMF 264 also includes location services managementfor regulatory services, transport for location services messagesbetween the UE 204 and a location management function (LMF) 270 (whichacts as a location server 112), transport for location services messagesbetween the New RAN 220 and the LMF 270, evolved packet system (EPS)bearer identifier allocation for interworking with the EPS, and UE 204mobility event notification. In addition, the AMF 264 also supportsfunctionalities for non-3GPP access networks.

Functions of the UPF 262 include acting as an anchor point forintra-/inter-RAT mobility (when applicable), acting as an externalprotocol data unit (PDU) session point of interconnect to a data network(not shown), providing packet routing and forwarding, packet inspection,user plane policy rule enforcement (e.g., gating, redirection, trafficsteering), lawful interception (user plane collection), traffic usagereporting, quality of service (QoS) handling for the user plane (e.g.,uplink/downlink rate enforcement, reflective QoS marking in thedownlink), uplink traffic verification (service data flow (SDF) to QoSflow mapping), transport level packet marking in the uplink anddownlink, downlink packet buffering and downlink data notificationtriggering, and sending and forwarding of one or more “end markers” tothe source RAN node. The UPF 262 may also support transfer of locationservices messages over a user plane between the UE 204 and a locationserver, such as a secure user plane location (SUPL) location platform(SLP) 272.

The functions of the SMF 266 include session management, UE Internetprotocol (IP) address allocation and management, selection and controlof user plane functions, configuration of traffic steering at the UPF262 to route traffic to the proper destination, control of part ofpolicy enforcement and QoS, and downlink data notification. Theinterface over which the SMF 266 communicates with the AMF 264 isreferred to as the N11 interface.

Another optional aspect may include an LMF 270, which may be incommunication with the 5GC 260 to provide location assistance for UEs204. The LMF 270 can be implemented as a plurality of separate servers(e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on asingle server, different software modules spread across multiplephysical servers, etc.), or alternately may each correspond to a singleserver. The LMF 270 can be configured to support one or more locationservices for UEs 204 that can connect to the LMF 270 via the corenetwork, 5GC 260, via the Internet (not illustrated), or via both. TheSLP 272 may support similar functions to the LMF 270, but whereas theLMF 270 may communicate with the AMF 264, New RAN 220, and UEs 204 overa control plane (e.g., using interfaces and protocols intended to conveysignaling messages and not voice or data), the SLP 272 may communicatewith UEs 204 and external clients (not shown in FIG. 2B) over a userplane (e.g., using protocols intended to carry voice or data like thetransmission control protocol (TCP) and/or IP).

In an aspect, the LMF 270, the SLP 272, or both may be integrated into abase station, such as the gNB 222 or the ng-eNB 224. When integratedinto the gNB 222 or the ng-eNB 224, the LMF 270 or the SLP 272 may bereferred to as a location management component (LMC). However, as usedherein, references to the LMF 270 and the SLP 272 include both the casein which the LMF 270 and the SLP 272 are components of the core network(e.g., 5GC 260) and the case in which the LMF 270 and the SLP 272 arecomponents of a base station.

FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C illustrate several example components (representedby corresponding blocks) that may be incorporated into a UE 302 (whichmay correspond to any of the UEs described herein), a base station 304(which may correspond to any of the base stations described herein), anda network entity 306 (which may correspond to or embody any of thenetwork functions described herein, including the location server 230and the LMF 270, or alternatively may be independent from the NG-RAN 220and/or 5GC 210/260 infrastructure depicted in FIGS. 2A and 2B, such as aprivate network) to support the file transmission operations as taughtherein. It will be appreciated that these components may be implementedin different types of apparatuses in different implementations (e.g., inan ASIC, in a system-on-chip (SoC), etc.). The illustrated componentsmay also be incorporated into other apparatuses in a communicationsystem. For example, other apparatuses in a system may includecomponents similar to those described to provide similar functionality.Also, a given apparatus may contain one or more of the components. Forexample, an apparatus may include multiple transceiver components thatenable the apparatus to operate on multiple carriers and/or communicatevia different technologies.

The UE 302 and the base station 304 each include one or more wirelesswide area network (WWAN) transceivers 310 and 350, respectively,providing means for communicating (e.g., means for transmitting, meansfor receiving, means for measuring, means for tuning, means forrefraining from transmitting, etc.) via one or more wirelesscommunication networks (not shown), such as an NR network, an LTEnetwork, a GSM network, and/or the like. The WWAN transceivers 310 and350 may each be connected to one or more antennas 316 and 356,respectively, for communicating with other network nodes, such as otherUEs, access points, base stations (e.g., eNBs, gNBs), etc., via at leastone designated RAT (e.g., NR, LTE, GSM, etc.) over a wirelesscommunication medium of interest (e.g., some set of time/frequencyresources in a particular frequency spectrum). The WWAN transceivers 310and 350 may be variously configured for transmitting and encodingsignals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, and soon), respectively, and conversely, for receiving and decoding signals318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, and soon), respectively, in accordance with the designated RAT. Specifically,the WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 include one or more transmitters 314and 354, respectively, for transmitting and encoding signals 318 and358, respectively, and one or more receivers 312 and 352, respectively,for receiving and decoding signals 318 and 358, respectively.

The UE 302 and the base station 304 each also include, at least in somecases, one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360,respectively. The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 may beconnected to one or more antennas 326 and 366, respectively, and providemeans for communicating (e.g., means for transmitting, means forreceiving, means for measuring, means for tuning, means for refrainingfrom transmitting, etc.) with other network nodes, such as other UEs,access points, base stations, etc., via at least one designated RAT(e.g., WiFi, LTE-D, Bluetooth®, Zigbee®, Z-Wave®, PC5, dedicatedshort-range communications (DSRC), wireless access for vehicularenvironments (WAVE), near-field communication (NFC), etc.) over awireless communication medium of interest. The short-range wirelesstransceivers 320 and 360 may be variously configured for transmittingand encoding signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications,information, and so on), respectively, and conversely, for receiving anddecoding signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications, information,pilots, and so on), respectively, in accordance with the designated RAT.Specifically, the short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 includeone or more transmitters 324 and 364, respectively, for transmitting andencoding signals 328 and 368, respectively, and one or more receivers322 and 362, respectively, for receiving and decoding signals 328 and368, respectively. As specific examples, the short-range wirelesstransceivers 320 and 360 may be WiFi transceivers, Bluetooth®transceivers, Zigbee® and/or Z-Wave® transceivers, NFC transceivers, orvehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and/or vehicle-to-everything (V2X)transceivers.

The UE 302 and the base station 304 also include, at least in somecases, satellite signal receivers 330 and 370. The satellite signalreceivers 330 and 370 may be connected to one or more antennas 336 and376, respectively, and may provide means for receiving and/or measuringsatellite positioning/communication signals 338 and 378, respectively.Where the satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 are satellitepositioning system receivers, the satellite positioning/communicationsignals 338 and 378 may be global positioning system (GPS) signals,global navigation satellite system (GLONASS) signals, Galileo signals,Beidou signals, Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (NAVIC),Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), etc. Where the satellite signalreceivers 330 and 370 are non-terrestrial network (NTN) receivers, thesatellite positioning/communication signals 338 and 378 may becommunication signals (e.g., carrying control and/or user data)originating from a 5G network. The satellite signal receivers 330 and370 may comprise any suitable hardware and/or software for receiving andprocessing satellite positioning/communication signals 338 and 378,respectively. The satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 may requestinformation and operations as appropriate from the other systems, and,at least in some cases, perform calculations to determine locations ofthe UE 302 and the base station 304, respectively, using measurementsobtained by any suitable satellite positioning system algorithm.

The base station 304 and the network entity 306 each include one or morenetwork transceivers 380 and 390, respectively, providing means forcommunicating (e.g., means for transmitting, means for receiving, etc.)with other network entities (e.g., other base stations 304, othernetwork entities 306). For example, the base station 304 may employ theone or more network transceivers 380 to communicate with other basestations 304 or network entities 306 over one or more wired or wirelessbackhaul links. As another example, the network entity 306 may employthe one or more network transceivers 390 to communicate with one or morebase station 304 over one or more wired or wireless backhaul links, orwith other network entities 306 over one or more wired or wireless corenetwork interfaces.

A transceiver may be configured to communicate over a wired or wirelesslink. A transceiver (whether a wired transceiver or a wirelesstransceiver) includes transmitter circuitry (e.g., transmitters 314,324, 354, 364) and receiver circuitry (e.g., receivers 312, 322, 352,362). A transceiver may be an integrated device (e.g., embodyingtransmitter circuitry and receiver circuitry in a single device) in someimplementations, may comprise separate transmitter circuitry andseparate receiver circuitry in some implementations, or may be embodiedin other ways in other implementations. The transmitter circuitry andreceiver circuitry of a wired transceiver (e.g., network transceivers380 and 390 in some implementations) may be coupled to one or more wirednetwork interface ports. Wireless transmitter circuitry (e.g.,transmitters 314, 324, 354, 364) may include or be coupled to aplurality of antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as anantenna array, that permits the respective apparatus (e.g., UE 302, basestation 304) to perform transmit “beamforming,” as described herein.Similarly, wireless receiver circuitry (e.g., receivers 312, 322, 352,362) may include or be coupled to a plurality of antennas (e.g.,antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as an antenna array, that permits therespective apparatus (e.g., UE 302, base station 304) to perform receivebeamforming, as described herein. In an aspect, the transmittercircuitry and receiver circuitry may share the same plurality ofantennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such that the respectiveapparatus can only receive or transmit at a given time, not both at thesame time. A wireless transceiver (e.g., WWAN transceivers 310 and 350,short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360) may also include anetwork listen module (NLM) or the like for performing variousmeasurements.

As used herein, the various wireless transceivers (e.g., transceivers310, 320, 350, and 360, and network transceivers 380 and 390 in someimplementations) and wired transceivers (e.g., network transceivers 380and 390 in some implementations) may generally be characterized as “atransceiver,” “at least one transceiver,” or “one or more transceivers.”As such, whether a particular transceiver is a wired or wirelesstransceiver may be inferred from the type of communication performed.For example, backhaul communication between network devices or serverswill generally relate to signaling via a wired transceiver, whereaswireless communication between a UE (e.g., UE 302) and a base station(e.g., base station 304) will generally relate to signaling via awireless transceiver.

The UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 alsoinclude other components that may be used in conjunction with theoperations as disclosed herein. The UE 302, the base station 304, andthe network entity 306 include one or more processors 332, 384, and 394,respectively, for providing functionality relating to, for example,wireless communication, and for providing other processingfunctionality. The processors 332, 384, and 394 may therefore providemeans for processing, such as means for determining, means forcalculating, means for receiving, means for transmitting, means forindicating, etc. In an aspect, the processors 332, 384, and 394 mayinclude, for example, one or more general purpose processors, multi-coreprocessors, central processing units (CPUs), ASICs, digital signalprocessors (DSPs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), otherprogrammable logic devices or processing circuitry, or variouscombinations thereof.

The UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 includememory circuitry implementing memories 340, 386, and 396 (e.g., eachincluding a memory device), respectively, for maintaining information(e.g., information indicative of reserved resources, thresholds,parameters, and so on). The memories 340, 386, and 396 may thereforeprovide means for storing, means for retrieving, means for maintaining,etc. In some cases, the UE 302, the base station 304, and the networkentity 306 may include positioning component 342, 388, and 398,respectively. The positioning component 342, 388, and 398 may behardware circuits that are part of or coupled to the processors 332,384, and 394, respectively, that, when executed, cause the UE 302, thebase station 304, and the network entity 306 to perform thefunctionality described herein. In other aspects, the positioningcomponent 342, 388, and 398 may be external to the processors 332, 384,and 394 (e.g., part of a modem processing system, integrated withanother processing system, etc.). Alternatively, the positioningcomponent 342, 388, and 398 may be memory modules stored in the memories340, 386, and 396, respectively, that, when executed by the processors332, 384, and 394 (or a modem processing system, another processingsystem, etc.), cause the UE 302, the base station 304, and the networkentity 306 to perform the functionality described herein. FIG. 3Aillustrates possible locations of the positioning component 342, whichmay be, for example, part of the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, thememory 340, the one or more processors 332, or any combination thereof,or may be a standalone component. FIG. 3B illustrates possible locationsof the positioning component 388, which may be, for example, part of theone or more WWAN transceivers 350, the memory 386, the one or moreprocessors 384, or any combination thereof, or may be a standalonecomponent. FIG. 3C illustrates possible locations of the positioningcomponent 398, which may be, for example, part of the one or morenetwork transceivers 390, the memory 396, the one or more processors394, or any combination thereof, or may be a standalone component.

The UE 302 may include one or more sensors 344 coupled to the one ormore processors 332 to provide means for sensing or detecting movementand/or orientation information that is independent of motion dataderived from signals received by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310,the one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320, and/or thesatellite signal receiver 330. By way of example, the sensor(s) 344 mayinclude an accelerometer (e.g., a micro-electrical mechanical systems(MEMS) device), a gyroscope, a geomagnetic sensor (e.g., a compass), analtimeter (e.g., a barometric pressure altimeter), and/or any other typeof movement detection sensor. Moreover, the sensor(s) 344 may include aplurality of different types of devices and combine their outputs inorder to provide motion information. For example, the sensor(s) 344 mayuse a combination of a multi-axis accelerometer and orientation sensorsto provide the ability to compute positions in two-dimensional (2D)and/or three-dimensional (3D) coordinate systems.

In addition, the UE 302 includes a user interface 346 providing meansfor providing indications (e.g., audible and/or visual indications) to auser and/or for receiving user input (e.g., upon user actuation of asensing device such a keypad, a touch screen, a microphone, and so on).Although not shown, the base station 304 and the network entity 306 mayalso include user interfaces.

Referring to the one or more processors 384 in more detail, in thedownlink, IP packets from the network entity 306 may be provided to theprocessor 384. The one or more processors 384 may implementfunctionality for an RRC layer, a packet data convergence protocol(PDCP) layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, and a medium accesscontrol (MAC) layer. The one or more processors 384 may provide RRClayer functionality associated with broadcasting of system information(e.g., master information block (MIB), system information blocks(SIBs)), RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRCconnection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRCconnection release), inter-RAT mobility, and measurement configurationfor UE measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated withheader compression/decompression, security (ciphering, deciphering,integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover supportfunctions; RLC layer functionality associated with the transfer of upperlayer PDUs, error correction through automatic repeat request (ARQ),concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC service data units(SDUs), re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC dataPDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with mapping betweenlogical channels and transport channels, scheduling informationreporting, error correction, priority handling, and logical channelprioritization.

The transmitter 354 and the receiver 352 may implement Layer-1 (L1)functionality associated with various signal processing functions.Layer-1, which includes a physical (PHY) layer, may include errordetection on the transport channels, forward error correction (FEC)coding/decoding of the transport channels, interleaving, rate matching,mapping onto physical channels, modulation/demodulation of physicalchannels, and MIMO antenna processing. The transmitter 354 handlesmapping to signal constellations based on various modulation schemes(e.g., binary phase-shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase-shift keying(QPSK), M-phase-shift keying (M-PSK), M-quadrature amplitude modulation(M-QAM)). The coded and modulated symbols may then be split intoparallel streams. Each stream may then be mapped to an orthogonalfrequency division multiplexing (OFDM) subcarrier, multiplexed with areference signal (e.g., pilot) in the time and/or frequency domain, andthen combined together using an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) toproduce a physical channel carrying a time domain OFDM symbol stream.The OFDM symbol stream is spatially precoded to produce multiple spatialstreams. Channel estimates from a channel estimator may be used todetermine the coding and modulation scheme, as well as for spatialprocessing. The channel estimate may be derived from a reference signaland/or channel condition feedback transmitted by the UE 302. Eachspatial stream may then be provided to one or more different antennas356. The transmitter 354 may modulate an RF carrier with a respectivespatial stream for transmission.

At the UE 302, the receiver 312 receives a signal through its respectiveantenna(s) 316. The receiver 312 recovers information modulated onto anRF carrier and provides the information to the one or more processors332. The transmitter 314 and the receiver 312 implement Layer-1functionality associated with various signal processing functions. Thereceiver 312 may perform spatial processing on the information torecover any spatial streams destined for the UE 302. If multiple spatialstreams are destined for the UE 302, they may be combined by thereceiver 312 into a single OFDM symbol stream. The receiver 312 thenconverts the OFDM symbol stream from the time-domain to the frequencydomain using a fast Fourier transform (FFT). The frequency domain signalcomprises a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDMsignal. The symbols on each subcarrier, and the reference signal, arerecovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signalconstellation points transmitted by the base station 304. These softdecisions may be based on channel estimates computed by a channelestimator. The soft decisions are then decoded and de-interleaved torecover the data and control signals that were originally transmitted bythe base station 304 on the physical channel. The data and controlsignals are then provided to the one or more processors 332, whichimplements Layer-3 (L3) and Layer-2 (L2) functionality.

In the uplink, the one or more processors 332 provides demultiplexingbetween transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, deciphering,header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IPpackets from the core network. The one or more processors 332 are alsoresponsible for error detection.

Similar to the functionality described in connection with the downlinktransmission by the base station 304, the one or more processors 332provides RRC layer functionality associated with system information(e.g., MIB, SIBs) acquisition, RRC connections, and measurementreporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with headercompression/decompression, and security (ciphering, deciphering,integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functionalityassociated with the transfer of upper layer PDUs, error correctionthrough ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC SDUs,re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; andMAC layer functionality associated with mapping between logical channelsand transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs onto transport blocks(TBs), demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling informationreporting, error correction through hybrid automatic repeat request(HARQ), priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

Channel estimates derived by the channel estimator from a referencesignal or feedback transmitted by the base station 304 may be used bythe transmitter 314 to select the appropriate coding and modulationschemes, and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streamsgenerated by the transmitter 314 may be provided to different antenna(s)316. The transmitter 314 may modulate an RF carrier with a respectivespatial stream for transmission.

The uplink transmission is processed at the base station 304 in a mannersimilar to that described in connection with the receiver function atthe UE 302. The receiver 352 receives a signal through its respectiveantenna(s) 356. The receiver 352 recovers information modulated onto anRF carrier and provides the information to the one or more processors384.

In the uplink, the one or more processors 384 provides demultiplexingbetween transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, deciphering,header decompression, control signal processing to recover IP packetsfrom the UE 302. IP packets from the one or more processors 384 may beprovided to the core network. The one or more processors 384 are alsoresponsible for error detection.

For convenience, the UE 302, the base station 304, and/or the networkentity 306 are shown in FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C as including variouscomponents that may be configured according to the various examplesdescribed herein. It will be appreciated, however, that the illustratedcomponents may have different functionality in different designs. Inparticular, various components in FIGS. 3A-3C are optional inalternative configurations and the various aspects includeconfigurations that may vary due to design choice, costs, use of thedevice, or other considerations. For example, in case of FIG. 3A, aparticular implementation of UE 302 may omit the WWAN transceiver(s) 310(e.g., a wearable device or tablet computer or PC or laptop may haveWi-Fi and/or Bluetooth capability without cellular capability), or mayomit the short-range wireless transceiver(s) 320 (e.g., cellular-only,etc.), or may omit the satellite signal receiver 330, or may omit thesensor(s) 344, and so on. In another example, in case of FIG. 3B, aparticular implementation of the base station 304 may omit the WWANtransceiver(s) 350 (e.g., a Wi-Fi “hotspot” access point withoutcellular capability), or may omit the short-range wirelesstransceiver(s) 360 (e.g., cellular-only, etc.), or may omit thesatellite receiver 370, and so on. For brevity, illustration of thevarious alternative configurations is not provided herein, but would bereadily understandable to one skilled in the art.

The various components of the UE 302, the base station 304, and thenetwork entity 306 may be communicatively coupled to each other overdata buses 334, 382, and 392, respectively. In an aspect, the data buses334, 382, and 392 may form, or be part of, a communication interface ofthe UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306,respectively. For example, where different logical entities are embodiedin the same device (e.g., gNB and location server functionalityincorporated into the same base station 304), the data buses 334, 382,and 392 may provide communication between them.

The components of FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C may be implemented in variousways. In some implementations, the components of FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3Cmay be implemented in one or more circuits such as, for example, one ormore processors and/or one or more ASICs (which may include one or moreprocessors). Here, each circuit may use and/or incorporate at least onememory component for storing information or executable code used by thecircuit to provide this functionality. For example, some or all of thefunctionality represented by blocks 310 to 346 may be implemented byprocessor and memory component(s) of the UE 302 (e.g., by execution ofappropriate code and/or by appropriate configuration of processorcomponents). Similarly, some or all of the functionality represented byblocks 350 to 388 may be implemented by processor and memorycomponent(s) of the base station 304 (e.g., by execution of appropriatecode and/or by appropriate configuration of processor components). Also,some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 390 to 398 may beimplemented by processor and memory component(s) of the network entity306 (e.g., by execution of appropriate code and/or by appropriateconfiguration of processor components). For simplicity, variousoperations, acts, and/or functions are described herein as beingperformed “by a UE,” “by a base station,” “by a network entity,” etc.However, as will be appreciated, such operations, acts, and/or functionsmay actually be performed by specific components or combinations ofcomponents of the UE 302, base station 304, network entity 306, etc.,such as the processors 332, 384, 394, the transceivers 310, 320, 350,and 360, the memories 340, 386, and 396, the positioning component 342,388, and 398, etc.

In some designs, the network entity 306 may be implemented as a corenetwork component. In other designs, the network entity 306 may bedistinct from a network operator or operation of the cellular networkinfrastructure (e.g., NG RAN 220 and/or 5GC 210/260). For example, thenetwork entity 306 may be a component of a private network that may beconfigured to communicate with the UE 302 via the base station 304 orindependently from the base station 304 (e.g., over a non-cellularcommunication link, such as WiFi).

NR supports a number of cellular network-based positioning technologies,including downlink-based, uplink-based, and downlink-and-uplink-basedpositioning methods. Downlink-based positioning methods include observedtime difference of arrival (OTDOA) in LTE, downlink time difference ofarrival (DL-TDOA) in NR, and downlink angle-of-departure (DL-AoD) in NR.In an OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning procedure, a UE measures thedifferences between the times of arrival (ToAs) of reference signals(e.g., PRS, TRS, narrowband reference signal (NRS), CSI-RS, SSB, etc.)received from pairs of base stations, referred to as reference signaltime difference (RSTD) or time difference of arrival (TDOA)measurements, and reports them to a positioning entity. Morespecifically, the UE receives the identifiers of a reference basestation (e.g., a serving base station) and multiple non-reference basestations in assistance data. The UE then measures the RSTD between thereference base station and each of the non-reference base stations.Based on the known locations of the involved base stations and the RSTDmeasurements, the positioning entity can estimate the UE's location. ForDL-AoD positioning, a base station measures the angle and other channelproperties (e.g., signal strength) of the downlink transmit beam used tocommunicate with a UE to estimate the location of the UE.

Uplink-based positioning methods include uplink time difference ofarrival (UL-TDOA) and uplink angle-of-arrival (UL-AoA). UL-TDOA issimilar to DL-TDOA, but is based on uplink reference signals (e.g., SRS)transmitted by the UE. For UL-AoA positioning, a base station measuresthe angle and other channel properties (e.g., gain level) of the uplinkreceive beam used to communicate with a UE to estimate the location ofthe UE.

Downlink-and-uplink-based positioning methods include enhanced cell-ID(E-CID) positioning and multi-round-trip-time (RTT) positioning (alsoreferred to as “multi-cell RTT”). In an RTT procedure, an initiator (abase station or a UE) transmits an RTT measurement signal (e.g., a PRSor SRS) to a responder (a UE or base station), which transmits an RTTresponse signal (e.g., an SRS or PRS) back to the initiator. The RTTresponse signal includes the difference between the ToA of the RTTmeasurement signal and the transmission time of the RTT response signal,referred to as the reception-to-transmission (Rx-Tx) measurement. Theinitiator calculates the difference between the transmission time of theRTT measurement signal and the ToA of the RTT response signal, referredto as the “Tx-Rx” measurement. The propagation time (also referred to asthe “time of flight”) between the initiator and the responder can becalculated from the Tx-Rx and Rx-Tx measurements. Based on thepropagation time and the known speed of light, the distance between theinitiator and the responder can be determined. For multi-RTTpositioning, a UE performs an RTT procedure with multiple base stationsto enable its location to be triangulated based on the known locationsof the base stations. RTT and multi-RTT methods can be combined withother positioning techniques, such as UL-AoA and DL-AoD, to improvelocation accuracy.

The E-CID positioning method is based on radio resource management (RRM)measurements. In E-CID, the UE reports the serving cell ID, the timingadvance (TA), and the identifiers, estimated timing, and signal strengthof detected neighbor base stations. The location of the UE is thenestimated based on this information and the known locations of the basestations.

To assist positioning operations, a location server (e.g., locationserver 112, LMF 270, SLP 272) may provide assistance data to the UE. Forexample, the assistance data may include identifiers of the basestations (or the cells/TRPs of the base stations) from which to measurereference signals, the reference signal configuration parameters (e.g.,the number of consecutive positioning slots, periodicity of positioningslots, muting sequence, frequency hopping sequence, reference signalidentifier (ID), reference signal bandwidth, slot offset, etc.), otherparameters applicable to the particular positioning method, orcombinations thereof. Alternatively, the assistance data may originatedirectly from the base stations themselves (e.g., in periodicallybroadcasted overhead messages, etc.). In some cases, the UE may be ableto detect neighbor network nodes itself without the use of assistancedata.

A location estimate may be referred to by other names, such as aposition estimate, location, position, position fix, fix, or the like. Alocation estimate may be geodetic and comprise coordinates (e.g.,latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude) or may be civic and comprisea street address, postal address, or some other verbal description of alocation. A location estimate may further be defined relative to someother known location or defined in absolute terms (e.g., using latitude,longitude, and possibly altitude). A location estimate may include anexpected error or uncertainty (e.g., by including an area or volumewithin which the location is expected to be included with some specifiedor default level of confidence).

Various frame structures may be used to support downlink and uplinktransmissions between network nodes (e.g., base stations and UEs).

FIG. 4A is a diagram 400 illustrating an example of a downlink framestructure, according to aspects.

FIG. 4B is a diagram 430 illustrating an example of channels within thedownlink frame structure, according to aspects. Other wirelesscommunications technologies may have different frame structures,different channels, or both.

LTE, and in some cases NR, utilizes OFDM on the downlink andsingle-carrier frequency division multiplexing (SC-FDM) on the uplink.Unlike LTE, however, NR has an option to use OFDM on the uplink as well.OFDM and SC-FDM partition the system bandwidth into multiple (K)orthogonal subcarriers, which are also commonly referred to as tones,bins, etc. Each subcarrier may be modulated with data. In general,modulation symbols are sent in the frequency domain with OFDM and in thetime domain with SC-FDM. The spacing between adjacent subcarriers may befixed, and the total number of subcarriers (K) may be dependent on thesystem bandwidth. For example, the spacing of the subcarriers may be 15kHz and the minimum resource allocation (resource block) may be 12subcarriers (or 180 kHz). Consequently, the nominal FFT size may beequal to 128, 256, 504, 1024, or 2048 for system bandwidth of 1.25, 2.5,5, 10, or 20 megahertz (MHz), respectively. The system bandwidth mayalso be partitioned into subbands. For example, a subband may cover 1.8MHz (i.e., 6 resource blocks), and there may be 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16subbands for system bandwidth of 1.25, 2.5, 5, 10, or 20 MHz,respectively.

LTE supports a single numerology (subcarrier spacing, symbol length,etc.). In contrast, NR may support multiple numerologies (μ), forexample, subcarrier spacing of 15 kHz, 30 kHz, 60 kHz, 120 kHz, and 240kHz or greater may be available. Table 1 provided below lists somevarious parameters for different NR numerologies.

TABLE 1 Max. nominal Slot Symbol system BW SCS Symbols/ Slots/ Slots/Duration Duration (MHz) with μ (kHz) Sot Subframe Frame (ms) (μs) 4K FFTsize 0 15 14 1 10 1 66.7 50 1 30 14 2 20 0.5 33.3 100 2 60 14 4 40 0.2516.7 200 3 120 14 8 80 0.125 8.33 400 4 240 14 16 160 0.0625 4.17 800

In the example of FIGS. 4A and 4B, a numerology of 15 kHz is used. Thus,in the time domain, a 10 millisecond (ms) frame is divided into 10equally sized subframes of 1 ms each, and each subframe includes onetime slot. In FIGS. 4A and 4B, time is represented horizontally (e.g.,on the X axis) with time increasing from left to right, while frequencyis represented vertically (e.g., on the Y axis) with frequencyincreasing (or decreasing) from bottom to top.

A resource grid may be used to represent time slots, each time slotincluding one or more time-concurrent resource blocks (RBs) (alsoreferred to as physical RBs (PRBs)) in the frequency domain. Theresource grid is further divided into multiple resource elements (REs).An RE may correspond to one symbol length in the time domain and onesubcarrier in the frequency domain. In NR, a subframe is 1 ms induration, a slot is fourteen symbols in the time domain, and an RBcontains twelve consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain andfourteen consecutive symbols in the time domain. Thus, in NR there isone RB per slot. Depending on the SCS, an NR subframe may have fourteensymbols, twenty-eight symbols, or more, and thus may have 1 slot, 2slots, or more. The number of bits carried by each RE depends on themodulation scheme.

Some of the REs carry downlink reference (pilot) signals (DL-RS). TheDL-RS may include PRS, TRS, PTRS, CRS, CSI-RS, DMRS, PSS, SSS, SSB, etc.FIG. 4A illustrates exemplary locations of REs carrying PRS (labeled“R”).

A “PRS instance” or “PRS occasion” is one instance of a periodicallyrepeated time window (e.g., a group of one or more consecutive slots)where PRS are expected to be transmitted. A PRS occasion may also bereferred to as a “PRS positioning occasion,” a “PRS positioninginstance, a “positioning occasion,” “a positioning instance,” a“positioning repetition,” or simply an “occasion,” an “instance,” or a“repetition.”

A collection of resource elements (REs) that are used for transmissionof PRS is referred to as a “PRS resource.” The collection of resourceelements can span multiple PRBs in the frequency domain and ‘N’ (e.g., 1or more) consecutive symbol(s) within a slot in the time domain. In agiven OFDM symbol in the time domain, a PRS resource occupiesconsecutive PRBs in the frequency domain.

The transmission of a PRS resource within a given PRB has a particularcomb size (also referred to as the “comb density”). A comb size ‘N’represents the subcarrier spacing (or frequency/tone spacing) withineach symbol of a PRS resource configuration. Specifically, for a combsize ‘N,’ PRS are transmitted in every Nth subcarrier of a symbol of aPRB. For example, for comb-4, for each of the fourth symbols of the PRSresource configuration, REs corresponding to every fourth subcarrier(e.g., subcarriers 0, 4, 8) are used to transmit PRS of the PRSresource. Currently, comb sizes of comb-2, comb-4, comb-6, and comb-12are supported for DL PRS. FIG. 4A illustrates an exemplary PRS resourceconfiguration for comb-6 (which spans six symbols). That is, thelocations of the shaded REs (labeled “R”) indicate a comb-6 PRS resourceconfiguration.

A “PRS resource set” is a set of PRS resources used for the transmissionof PRS signals, where each PRS resource has a PRS resource ID. Inaddition, the PRS resources in a PRS resource set are associated withthe same TRP. A PRS resource set is identified by a PRS resource set IDand is associated with a particular TRP (identified by a TRP ID). Inaddition, the PRS resources in a PRS resource set have the sameperiodicity, a common muting pattern configuration, and the samerepetition factor (e.g., PRS-ResourceRepetitionFactor) across slots. Theperiodicity is the time from the first repetition of the first PRSresource of a first PRS instance to the same first repetition of thesame first PRS resource of the next PRS instance. The periodicity mayhave a length selected from 2^(μ)·{4, 5, 8, 10, 16, 20, 32, 40, 64, 80,160, 320, 640, 1280, 2560, 5040, 10240} slots, with μ=0, 1, 2, 3. Therepetition factor may have a length selected from {1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 16,32} slots.

A PRS resource ID in a PRS resource set is associated with a single beam(or beam ID) transmitted from a single TRP (where a TRP may transmit oneor more beams). That is, each PRS resource of a PRS resource set may betransmitted on a different beam, and as such, a “PRS resource,” orsimply “resource,” can also be referred to as a “beam.” Note that thisdoes not have any implications on whether the TRPs and the beams onwhich PRS are transmitted are known to the UE.

A “positioning frequency layer” (also referred to simply as a “frequencylayer”) is a collection of one or more PRS resource sets across one ormore TRPs that have the same values for certain parameters.Specifically, the collection of PRS resource sets has the samesubcarrier spacing (SCS) and cyclic prefix (CP) type (meaning allnumerologies supported for the PDSCH are also supported for PRS), thesame Point A, the same value of the downlink PRS bandwidth, the samestart PRB (and center frequency), and the same comb-size. The Point Aparameter takes the value of the parameter ARFCN-ValueNR (where “ARFCN”stands for “absolute radio-frequency channel number”) and is anidentifier/code that specifies a pair of physical radio channel used fortransmission and reception. The downlink PRS bandwidth may have agranularity of four PRBs, with a minimum of 24 PRBs and a maximum of 272PRBs. Currently, up to four frequency layers have been defined, and upto two PRS resource sets may be configured per TRP per frequency layer.

The concept of a frequency layer is somewhat like the concept ofcomponent carriers and bandwidth parts (BWPs), but different in thatcomponent carriers and BWPs are used by one base station (or a macrocell base station and a small cell base station) to transmit datachannels, while frequency layers are used by several (usually three ormore) base stations to transmit PRS. A UE may indicate the number offrequency layers it can support when it sends the network itspositioning capabilities, such as during an LTE positioning protocol(LPP) session. For example, a UE may indicate whether it can support oneor four positioning frequency layers.

FIG. 4B illustrates an example of various channels within a downlinkslot of a radio frame. In NR, the channel bandwidth, or systembandwidth, is divided into multiple BWPs. A BWP is a contiguous set ofPRBs selected from a contiguous subset of the common RBs for a givennumerology on a given carrier. Generally, a maximum of four BWPs can bespecified in the downlink and uplink. That is, a UE can be configuredwith up to four BWPs on the downlink, and up to four BWPs on the uplink.Only one BWP (uplink or downlink) may be active at a given time, meaningthe UE may only receive or transmit over one BWP at a time. On thedownlink, the bandwidth of each BWP should be equal to or greater thanthe bandwidth of the SSB, but it may or may not contain the SSB.

Referring to FIG. 4B, a primary synchronization signal (PSS) is used bya UE to determine subframe/symbol timing and a physical layer identity.A secondary synchronization signal (SSS) is used by a UE to determine aphysical layer cell identity group number and radio frame timing. Basedon the physical layer identity and the physical layer cell identitygroup number, the UE can determine a PCI. Based on the PCI, the UE candetermine the locations of the aforementioned DL-RS. The physicalbroadcast channel (PBCH), which carries an MIB, may be logically groupedwith the PSS and SSS to form an SSB (also referred to as an SS/PBCH).The MIB provides a number of RBs in the downlink system bandwidth and asystem frame number (SFN). The physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH)carries user data, broadcast system information not transmitted throughthe PBCH, such as system information blocks (SIBs), and paging messages.

The physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) carries downlink controlinformation (DCI) within one or more control channel elements (CCEs),each CCE including one or more RE group (REG) bundles (which may spanmultiple symbols in the time domain), each REG bundle including one ormore REGs, each REG corresponding to 12 resource elements (one resourceblock) in the frequency domain and one OFDM symbol in the time domain.The set of physical resources used to carry the PDCCH/DCI is referred toin NR as the control resource set (CORESET). In NR, a PDCCH is confinedto a single CORESET and is transmitted with its own DMRS. This enablesUE-specific beamforming for the PDCCH.

In the example of FIG. 4B, there is one CORESET per BWP, and the CORESETspans three symbols (although it could be only one or two symbols) inthe time domain. Unlike LTE control channels, which occupy the entiresystem bandwidth, in NR, PDCCH channels are localized to a specificregion in the frequency domain (i.e., a CORESET). Thus, the frequencycomponent of the PDCCH shown in FIG. 4B is illustrated as less than asingle BWP in the frequency domain. Note that although the illustratedCORESET is contiguous in the frequency domain, it need not be. Inaddition, the CORESET may span less than three symbols in the timedomain.

The DCI within the PDCCH carries information about uplink resourceallocation (persistent and non-persistent) and descriptions aboutdownlink data transmitted to the UE. Multiple (e.g., up to eight) DCIscan be configured in the PDCCH, and these DCIs can have one of multipleformats. For example, there are different DCI formats for uplinkscheduling, for non-MIMO downlink scheduling, for MIMO downlinkscheduling, and for uplink power control. A PDCCH may be transported by1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 CCEs in order to accommodate different DCI payloadsizes or coding rates.

Positioning reference signals are defined for NR positioning to enableUEs to detect and measure more neighbor TRPs. Several configurations aresupported to enable a variety of deployments, such as indoor, outdoor,sub-6, and millimeter wave (mmW) deployments. Both UE assisted and UEbased position calculation is supported:

TABLE 2 Reference Signals UE Measurements Positioning techniques DL PRSDL RSTD DL-TDOA DL PRS DL PRS RSRP DL-TDOA, DL-AoD, Multi-RTT DL PRS/SRSfor UE Rx − Tx time Multi-RTT positioning difference SSB/CSI-RS forSS-RSRP (for RRM), E-CID RRM SS-RSRQ (for RRM), CSI-RSRP (for RRM),CSI-RSRQ (for RRM)In conventional systems, a UE will report its capability to process PRSresources in a capability update, and then receive assistance data (AD)from the network entity (e.g., from a location server) that lists DL-PRSresources, sorted in decreasing order of measurement priority. Since theAD typically lists more PRS resources than the UE has the processingcapability to handle, then by agreement the UE would select the first NPRS resources from the list for processing, where N is the number of PRSresources that the UE can handle. For example, the AD may list twentyDL-PRS resources but the UE can only process five of them. Peragreement, the UE would select the first five PRS resources forprocessing. The AD prioritizes the PRS resources based entirely on PRSmeasurements.

To perform an Rx-Tx measurement, however, a UE must perform both a PRSmeasurement and an SRS transmission, and in order to get an accurateRx-Tx measurement, the PRS and SRS need to be in proximity in time,e.g., to minimize error due to possible clock drift between the UE andthe base station. Current standards state that PRS and SRS must be nomore than 25 milliseconds (msec) apart in time, but other proximityrequirements, e.g., 20 msec, 80 msec, 160 msec, etc., are alsocontemplated.

FIG. 5 shows an example scenario in which PRS occasions (PRS0, PRS1, andPRS2) have a different period than SRS occasions (SRS0 and SRS1). As aresult, some PRS-SRS pairs do not satisfy the proximity requirement. InFIG. 5 , for example, the pairs {PRS0,SRS0} and {PRS2,SRS1} satisfy theproximity requirement, but the pairs {PRS1,SRS0} and {PRS1,SRS1} do not.

One issue is that PRS resources are provided to the UE by the locationserver but the SRS configuration is provided to the UE by a serving basestation, e.g., via a radio resource control (RRC) message. The locationserver is not aware of SRS scheduling, and prioritizes the PRS resourcessolely on PRS measurements without consideration of SRS. As a result,when a UE selects the first N PRS resources defined in the AD per theagreement described above, some of the PRS resources selected may notsatisfy the PRS-SRS proximity requirement. In FIG. 5 , for example, PRS1may be included in the first N PRS resources defined in the AD but PRS1does not satisfy the proximity requirement and thus should not be usedfor Rx-Tx measurements.

Several approaches to this problem are being considered. One approachbeing considered is to apply the proximity timing requirement only ifany SRS transmission is within 25 ms of at least one DL PRS resource ofeach of the TRPs in the assistance data. Another approach beingconsidered is to apply the proximity timing requirement only if there isat least one SRS transmission within the measurement period. Yet anotherapproach being considered is to always apply the proximity timingrequirement regardless of the time separation between PRS and SRS, butto require the UE to compensate for the difference in the receivedtiming of the radio frame containing the PRS and the subframe used fortransmitting the SRS.

There are disadvantages associated with each of these approaches. Thefirst two approaches simply waive the proximity requirement is it cannotbe met, essentially rendering it meaningless. The third approach imposesan additional burden on the UE to track and compensate for timingdifferences between the received PRS and the transmitted SRS.

To overcome these disadvantages, an improved method of performing Rx-Txmeasurements is herein presented, in which PRS resources from the AD areselected based on PRS-SRS proximity, rather than simply selecting thetop N PRS resources from the list provided by the AD.

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary method 600 of proximity-basedprioritization of UL and DL positioning resources according to aspectsof the disclosure. FIG. 6 is a signaling message diagram showing aninteraction between a UE 302, a base station (BS) 304, and a networkentity (NE) 306, which may be a location server (e.g., location server112, LMF 270, or SLP 272). At 602, the network entity 306 requestscapability information from the UE 302, and at 604, the UE providescapability information to the network entity 306. At 606, the UErequests assistance data from the network entity, and at 608, thenetwork entity provides assistance data to the UE 302. In some aspects,the assistance data includes information identifying a first set of NPRS resources, and also includes a parameter M<N. Examples of PRSresources include, but are not limited to, positioning reference signal(PRS) resources, PRS resource sets, PRS frequency layers,transmission/reception points (TRPs), cells, or combinations thereof.

At 610, the UE receives, from the base station 304, informationidentifying a second set containing least one SRS resource. Thisinformation may be in the form of an SRS configuration, and may bereceived via RRC. It is noted that the order of the signaling messagesin 602, 604, 606, 608, and 610 are illustrative and not limiting, i.e.,the specific order of those elements in FIG. 6 may vary. For example,the UE 302 may receive PRS configuration information after receiving SRSconfiguration, and vice versa. Likewise, the UE 302 may receiveinformation in response to a specific request for that information, orit may receive that information unilaterally, i.e., without having madea specific request for it.

At 612, the UE 302 selects PRS resources based on each PRS resource'sproximity to an SRS resource. In some aspects, the UE 302 selects PRSresources that are within a maximum allowed distance from an SRSresource—e.g., within a proximity threshold—which the UE 302 candetermine based on the PRS and SRS information received from the networkentity 306 and the base station 304, respectively. At 614, the UE 302receives a PRS, and at 616, the UE 302 sends an SRS. In the exampleillustrated in FIG. 6 , the PRS and SRS are within the proximitythreshold, so at 618, the UE 302 calculates Rx-Tx and at 620, reportsthe value of Rx-Tx to the base station 304, to the network entity 306,or to both.

FIG. 7A, FIG. 7B, FIG. 7C, FIG. 7D, and FIG. 7E are flowcharts showingportions of an example process 700 associated with proximity-basedprioritization of uplink and downlink positioning resources, accordingto aspects of the present disclosure. In some implementations, one ormore process blocks of FIGS. 7A-7E may be performed by a user equipment(UE) (e.g., UE 104). In some implementations, one or more process blocksof FIGS. 7A-7E may be performed by another device or a group of devicesseparate from or including the UE. Additionally, or alternatively, oneor more process blocks of FIGS. 7A-7E may be performed by one or morecomponents of UE 302, such as processor(s) 332, memory 340, WWANtransceiver(s) 310, short-range wireless transceiver(s) 320, satellitesignal receiver 330, sensor(s) 344, user interface 346, and positioningcomponent(s) 342, any or all of which may be means for performing theoperations of process 700.

As shown in FIG. 7A, process 700 may include receiving, from a networkentity, first information identifying positioning reference signal (PRS)resources (block 702). Means for performing the operation of block 702may include the processor(s) 332, memory 340, or WWAN transceiver(s) 310of the UE 302. For example, the UE 302 may receive the first informationidentifying positioning reference signal (PRS) resources using atransceiver, such as the transmitter(s) 314 or the transmitter(s) 324.In some aspects, the network entity comprises a location server. In someaspects, the location server comprises a location management function(LMF) or a secure user plane location (SUPL) location platform (SLP).

As further shown in FIG. 7A, process 700 may include receiving, from abase station, second information identifying sounding reference signal(SRS) resources (block 704). Means for performing the operation of block704 may include the processor(s) 332, memory 340, or WWAN transceiver(s)310 of the UE 302. For example, the UE 302 may receive the secondinformation identifying sounding reference signal (SRS) resources usinga transceiver, such as the transmitter(s) 314 or the transmitter(s) 324.In some aspects, the base station comprises a gNodeB (gNB).

As further shown in FIG. 7A, process 700 may include selecting, from PRSresources identified by the first information, PRS resources thatsatisfy a PRS-SRS proximity requirement with regard to at least one SRSresource identified by the second information (block 706). Means forperforming the operation of block 706 may include the processor(s) 332,memory 340, or WWAN transceiver(s) 310 of the UE 302. For example, theUE 302 may select the PRS resources that satisfy a PRS-SRS proximityrequirement with regard to at least one SRS resource identified by thesecond information, using the processor(s) 332 or the positioningcomponent(s) 342, e.g., based on information stored in memory 340. Insome aspects, selecting PRS resources that satisfy the PRS-SRS proximityrequirement with regard to at least one of the SRS resources identifiedby the second information comprises selecting PRS resources having atime difference between reception of the PRS and transmission of an SRSthat does not exceed a maximum time difference threshold.

As further shown in FIG. 7A, process 700 may include using the selectedPRS resources at least for performing UE Rx-Tx measurements (block 708).Means for performing the operation of block 708 may include theprocessor(s) 332, memory 340, or WWAN transceiver(s) 310 of the UE 302.For example, the UE 302 may use the selected PRS resources whenperforming UE Rx-Tx measurements using signals received by thereceiver(s) 312 or the receiver(s) 322 and signals transmitted by thetransmitter(s) 314 or the transmitter(s) 324. In some aspects, process700 includes reporting results of Rx-Tx measurements to the basestation, to the network entity, or to both.

As shown in FIG. 7B, in some aspects, selecting PRS resources thatsatisfy the PRS-SRS proximity requirement with regard to the at leastone SRS resource identified by the second information (block 706)comprises selecting, from the PRS resources identified by the firstinformation, a subset of PRS resources according to a priority (block710), and selecting, from the subset of PRS resources, PRS resourcesbased on their proximities in time to the SRS resources identified bythe second information (block 712).

As shown in FIG. 7C, in some aspects, selecting the subset of PRSresources according to a priority (block 710) comprises determining amaximum number M of PRS resources that the UE can process during apredefined interval of time (block 714), and selecting, from the PRSresources identified by the first information, the M highest priorityPRS resources as the subset of PRS resources (block 716).

As shown in FIG. 7D, in some aspects, selecting PRS resources thatsatisfy the PRS-SRS proximity requirement with regard to the at leastone of the SRS resources identified by the second information (block706) comprises identifying, as a first set and from the PRS resourcesidentified by the first information, PRS resources to be considered foruse for Rx-Tx measurements (block 718), identifying, as a second set,one or more PRS-SRS resource pairs that satisfy the PRS-SRS proximityrequirement (block 720), identifying, as a third set, PRS resources fromthe first set that are part of at least one PRS-SRS resource pair in thesecond set (block 722), and selecting some of all of the PRS resourcesin the third set (block 724).

As shown in FIG. 7E, in some aspects, selecting some of all of the PRSresources in the third set (block 724) comprises determining whether amaximum number of PRS resources that the UE can process during apredefined interval of time (M) is less than the number of PRS resourcesin the third set (N) (block 726).

If the UE can process more PRS resources during the predefined intervalof time than are in the third set (i.e., M>N), then all of the PRSresources in the third set are selected (block 728), and additional PRSresources are chosen from the first set until M PRS resources areselected (block 730).

If the third set contains more PRS resources than the UE can processduring the predefined interval of time (i.e., M<N), then in someaspects, the PRS-SRS resources pairs in the second set are prioritized,e.g., based on PRS-SRS proximity, priority of the PRS, etc., (block732), and then PRS resources from the first M PRS-SRS pairs in thesecond set are selected (block 734).

Process 700 may include additional implementations, such as any singleimplementation or any combination of implementations described belowand/or in connection with one or more other processes describedelsewhere herein. Although FIG. 7 shows example blocks of process 700,in some implementations, process 700 may include additional blocks,fewer blocks, different blocks, or differently arranged blocks thanthose depicted in FIG. 7 . Additionally, or alternatively, two or moreof the blocks of process 700 may be performed in parallel.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of an example process 800 associated withproximity-based prioritization of uplink and downlink positioningresources according to aspects of the disclosure. In someimplementations, one or more process blocks of FIG. 8 may be performedby a network entity (e.g., location server 112, location server 230, LMF270, SLP 272). In some implementations, one or more process blocks ofFIG. 8 may be performed by another device or a group of devices separatefrom or including the network entity. Additionally, or alternatively,one or more process blocks of FIG. 8 may be performed by one or morecomponents of network entity 306, such as processor(s) 394, memory 396,network transceiver(s) 390, and positioning component(s) 398, any or allof which may be means for performing the operations of process 800.

As shown in FIG. 8 , process 800 may include transmitting, to a userequipment (UE), first information identifying positioning referencesignal (PRS) resources (block 802). Means for performing the operationof block 802 may include the processor(s) 394, memory 396, or networktransceiver(s) 390 of the network entity 306. For example, the networkentity 306 may transmit the first information using the networktransceiver(s) 390.

As further shown in FIG. 8 , process 800 may include transmitting, tothe UE, second information specifying a number of PRS resources to beused by the UE at least for performing UE Rx-Tx measurements (block804). Means for performing the operation of block 804 may include theprocessor(s) 394, memory 396, or network transceiver(s) 390 of thenetwork entity 306. For example, the network entity 306 may transmit thesecond information using the network transceiver(s) 390.

Process 800 may include additional implementations, such as any singleimplementation or any combination of implementations described belowand/or in connection with one or more other processes describedelsewhere herein. Although FIG. 8 shows example blocks of process 800,in some implementations, process 800 may include additional blocks,fewer blocks, different blocks, or differently arranged blocks thanthose depicted in FIG. 8 . Additionally, or alternatively, two or moreof the blocks of process 800 may be performed in parallel.

In the detailed description above it can be seen that different featuresare grouped together in examples. This manner of disclosure should notbe understood as an intention that the example clauses have morefeatures than are explicitly mentioned in each clause. Rather, thevarious aspects of the disclosure may include fewer than all features ofan individual example clause disclosed. Therefore, the following clausesshould hereby be deemed to be incorporated in the description, whereineach clause by itself can stand as a separate example. Although eachdependent clause can refer in the clauses to a specific combination withone of the other clauses, the aspect(s) of that dependent clause are notlimited to the specific combination. It will be appreciated that otherexample clauses can also include a combination of the dependent clauseaspect(s) with the subject matter of any other dependent clause orindependent clause or a combination of any feature with other dependentand independent clauses. The various aspects disclosed herein expresslyinclude these combinations, unless it is explicitly expressed or can bereadily inferred that a specific combination is not intended (e.g.,contradictory aspects, such as defining an element as both an insulatorand a conductor). Furthermore, it is also intended that aspects of aclause can be included in any other independent clause, even if theclause is not directly dependent on the independent clause.

Implementation examples are described in the following numbered clauses:

Clause 1. A method of wireless communication performed by a userequipment (UE), the method comprising: receiving, from a network entity,first information identifying positioning reference signal (PRS)resources; receiving, from a base station, second informationidentifying sounding reference signal (SRS) resources; selecting, fromPRS resources identified by the first information, PRS resources thatsatisfy a PRS-SRS proximity requirement with regard to at least one SRSresource identified by the second information; and using the selectedPRS resources at least for performing UE Rx-Tx measurements.

Clause 2. The method of clause 1, wherein selecting, from the PRSresources identified by the first information, PRS resources thatsatisfy the PRS-SRS proximity requirement with regard to the at leastone of the SRS resources identified by the second information comprisesselecting PRS resources having a time difference between reception ofthe PRS and transmission of an SRS that does not exceed a maximum timedifference threshold.

Clause 3. The method of any of clauses 1 to 2, wherein selecting, fromPRS resources identified by the first information, PRS resources thatsatisfy the PRS-SRS proximity requirement with regard to the at leastone SRS resource identified by the second information comprises:selecting, from the PRS resources identified by the first information, asubset of PRS resources according to a priority; and selecting, from thesubset of PRS resources, PRS resources based on their proximities intime to the SRS resources identified by the second information.

Clause 4. The method of clause 3, wherein selecting, from the PRSresources identified by the first information, the subset of PRSresources according to a priority: determining a maximum number M of PRSresources that the UE can process during a predefined interval of time;and selecting, from the PRS resources identified by the firstinformation, the M highest priority PRS resources as the subset of PRSresources.

Clause 5. The method of any of clauses 1 to 4, further comprisingreporting results of Rx-Tx measurements to the base station, to thenetwork entity, or to both.

Clause 6. The method of any of clauses 1 to 5, wherein selecting, fromthe PRS resources identified by the first information, PRS resourcesthat satisfy the PRS-SRS proximity requirement with regard to the atleast one of the SRS resources identified by the second informationcomprises: identifying, as a first set and from the PRS resourcesidentified by the first information, PRS resources to be considered foruse for Rx-Tx measurements; identifying, as a second set, one or morePRS-SRS resource pairs that satisfy the PRS-SRS proximity requirement;and identifying, as a third set, PRS resources from the first set thatare part of at least one PRS-SRS resource pair in the second set.

Clause 7. The method of clause 6, wherein identifying, as a second set,one or more PRS-SRS resource pairs that satisfy the PRS-SRS proximityrequirement further comprises prioritizing the PRS-SRS resource pairs inthe second set according to proximity; and wherein identifying, as thethird set, PRS resources from the first set that are part of at leastone PRS-SRS resource pair in the second set comprises: determining amaximum number M of PRS resources that the UE can process during apredefined interval of time; upon determining that the third setcontains a number of PRS resources greater than or equal to M, selectingthe first M PRS resources in the third set; and upon determining thatthe third set contains a number L of PRS resources less than M,selecting the PRS resources in the third set and using additional M-LPRS resources from the first set.

Clause 8. The method of any of clauses 1 to 7, wherein the networkentity comprises a location server.

Clause 9. The method of clause 8, wherein the location server comprisesa location management function (LMF) or a secure user plane location(SUPL) location platform (SLP).

Clause 10. The method of any of clauses 1 to 9, wherein the base stationcomprises a gNodeB (gNB).

Clause 11. A method of wireless communication performed by a networkentity, the method comprising: transmitting, to a user equipment (UE),first information identifying positioning reference signal (PRS)resources; and transmitting, to the UE, second information specifying anumber of PRS resources to be used by the UE at least for performing UERx-Tx measurements.

Clause 12. The method of clause 11, wherein the network entity comprisesa location server.

Clause 13. The method of clause 12, wherein the location servercomprises a location management function (LMF) or a secure user planelocation (SUPL) location platform (SLP).

Clause 14. A user equipment (UE), comprising: a memory; at least onetransceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to thememory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processorconfigured to: receive, via the at least one transceiver, from a networkentity, first information identifying positioning reference signal (PRS)resources; receive, via the at least one transceiver, from a basestation, second information identifying sounding reference signal (SRS)resources; select, from PRS resources identified by the firstinformation, PRS resources that satisfy a PRS-SRS proximity requirementwith regard to at least one SRS resource identified by the secondinformation; and use the selected PRS resources at least for performingUE Rx-Tx measurements.

Clause 15. The UE of clause 14, wherein, to select, from the PRSresources identified by the first information, PRS resources thatsatisfy the PRS-SRS proximity requirement with regard to the at leastone of the SRS resources identified by the second information, the atleast one processor is configured to select PRS resources having a timedifference between reception of the PRS and transmission of an SRS thatdoes not exceed a maximum time difference threshold.

Clause 16. The UE of any of clauses 14 to 15, wherein, to select, fromPRS resources identified by the first information, PRS resources thatsatisfy the PRS-SRS proximity requirement with regard to the at leastone SRS resource identified by the second information, the at least oneprocessor is configured to: select, from the PRS resources identified bythe first information, a subset of PRS resources according to apriority; and select, from the subset of PRS resources, PRS resourcesbased on their proximities in time to the SRS resources identified bythe second information.

Clause 17. The UE of clause 16, wherein selecting, from the PRSresources identified by the first information, the subset of PRSresources according to a priority: determine a maximum number M of PRSresources that the UE can process during a predefined interval of time;and select, from the PRS resources identified by the first information,the M highest priority PRS resources as the subset of PRS resources.

Clause 18. The UE of any of clauses 14 to 17, wherein the at least oneprocessor is further configured to reporting results of Rx-Txmeasurements to the base station, to the network entity, or to both.

Clause 19. The UE of any of clauses 14 to 18, wherein, to select, fromthe PRS resources identified by the first information, PRS resourcesthat satisfy the PRS-SRS proximity requirement with regard to the atleast one of the SRS resources identified by the second information, theat least one processor is configured to: identify, as a first set andfrom the PRS resources identified by the first information, PRSresources to be considered for use for Rx-Tx measurements; identify, asa second set, one or more PRS-SRS resource pairs that satisfy thePRS-SRS proximity requirement; and identify, as a third set, PRSresources from the first set that are part of at least one PRS-SRSresource pair in the second set.

Clause 20. The UE of clause 19, wherein, to identify, as a second set,one or more PRS-SRS resource pairs that satisfy the PRS-SRS proximityrequirement, the at least one processor is configured to prioritize thePRS-SRS resource pairs in the second set according to proximity; andwherein, to identify, as the third set, PRS resources from the first setthat are part of at least one PRS-SRS resource pair in the second set,the at least one processor is configured to: determining a maximumnumber M of PRS resources that the UE can process during a predefinedinterval of time; upon determining that the third set contains a numberof PRS resources greater than or equal to M, selecting the first M PRSresources in the third set; and upon determining that the third setcontains a number L of PRS resources less than M, selecting the PRSresources in the third set and using additional M-L PRS resources fromthe first set.

Clause 21. The UE of any of clauses 14 to 20, wherein the network entitycomprises a location server.

Clause 22. The UE of clause 21, wherein the location server comprises alocation management function (LMF) or a secure user plane location(SUPL) location platform (SLP).

Clause 23. The UE of any of clauses 14 to 22, wherein the base stationcomprises a gNodeB (gNB).

Clause 24. A network entity, comprising: a memory; at least onetransceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to thememory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processorconfigured to: transmit, via the at least one transceiver, to a userequipment (UE), first information identifying positioning referencesignal (PRS) resources; and transmit, via the at least one transceiver,to the UE, second information specifying a number of PRS resources to beused by the UE at least for performing UE Rx-Tx measurements.

Clause 25. The network entity of clause 24, wherein the network entitycomprises a location server.

Clause 26. The network entity of clause 25, wherein the location servercomprises a location management function (LMF) or a secure user planelocation (SUPL) location platform (SLP).

Clause 27. A user equipment (UE), comprising: means for receiving, froma network entity, first information identifying positioning referencesignal (PRS) resources; means for receiving, from a base station, secondinformation identifying sounding reference signal (SRS) resources; meansfor selecting, from PRS resources identified by the first information,PRS resources that satisfy a PRS-SRS proximity requirement with regardto at least one SRS resource identified by the second information; andmeans for using the selected PRS resources at least for performing UERx-Tx measurements.

Clause 28. The UE of clause 27, wherein the means for selecting, fromthe PRS resources identified by the first information, the PRS resourcesthat satisfy the PRS-SRS proximity requirement with regard to the atleast one of the SRS resources identified by the second information,comprises means for selecting PRS resources having a time differencebetween reception of the PRS and transmission of an SRS that does notexceed a maximum time difference threshold.

Clause 29. The UE of any of clauses 27 to 28, wherein the means forselecting, from the PRS resources identified by the first information,the PRS resources that satisfy the PRS-SRS proximity requirement withregard to the at least one SRS resource identified by the secondinformation, comprises: means for selecting, from the PRS resourcesidentified by the first information, a subset of PRS resources accordingto a priority; and means for selecting, from the subset of PRSresources, PRS resources based on their proximities in time to the SRSresources identified by the second information.

Clause 30. The UE of clause 29, wherein the means for selecting, fromthe PRS resources identified by the first information, the subset of PRSresources according to the priority comprises: means for determining amaximum number M of PRS resources that the UE can process during apredefined interval of time; and means for selecting, from the PRSresources identified by the first information, an M highest priority PRSresources as the subset of PRS resources.

Clause 31. The UE of any of clauses 27 to 30, further comprisingreporting results of Rx-Tx measurements to the base station, to thenetwork entity, or to both.

Clause 32. The UE of any of clauses 27 to 31, wherein the means forselecting, from the PRS resources identified by the first information,the PRS resources that satisfy the PRS-SRS proximity requirement withregard to the at least one of the SRS resources identified by the secondinformation, comprises: means for identifying, as a first set and fromthe PRS resources identified by the first information, PRS resources tobe considered for use for Rx-Tx measurements; means for identifying, asa second set, one or more PRS-SRS resource pairs that satisfy thePRS-SRS proximity requirement; and means for identifying, as a thirdset, PRS resources from the first set that are part of at least onePRS-SRS resource pair in the second set.

Clause 33. The UE of clause 32, wherein the means for identifying, asthe second set, the one or more PRS-SRS resource pairs that satisfy thePRS-SRS proximity requirement, further comprises means for prioritizingPRS-SRS resource pairs in the second set according to proximity; andwherein the means for identifying, as the third set, PRS resources fromthe first set that are part of the at least one PRS-SRS resource pair inthe second set comprises: means for determining a maximum number M ofPRS resources that the UE can process during a predefined interval oftime; means for, upon determining that the third set contains a numberof PRS resources greater than or equal to M, selecting a first M PRSresources in the third set; and means for, upon determining that thethird set contains a number L of PRS resources less than M, selectingthe PRS resources in the third set and using additional M-L PRSresources from the first set.

Clause 34. The UE of any of clauses 27 to 33, wherein the network entitycomprises a location server.

Clause 35. The UE of clause 34, wherein the location server comprises alocation management function (LMF) or a secure user plane location(SUPL) location platform (SLP).

Clause 36. The UE of any of clauses 27 to 35, wherein the base stationcomprises a gNodeB (gNB).

Clause 37. A network entity, comprising: means for transmitting, to auser equipment (UE), first information identifying positioning referencesignal (PRS) resources; and means for transmitting, to the UE, secondinformation specifying a number of PRS resources to be used by the UE atleast for performing UE Rx-Tx measurements.

Clause 38. The network entity of clause 37, wherein the network entitycomprises a location server.

Clause 39. The network entity of clause 38, wherein the location servercomprises a location management function (LMF) or a secure user planelocation (SUPL) location platform (SLP).

Clause 40. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storingcomputer-executable instructions that, when executed by a user equipment(UE), cause the UE to: receive, from a network entity, first informationidentifying positioning reference signal (PRS) resources; receive, froma base station, second information identifying sounding reference signal(SRS) resources; select, from the PRS resources identified by the firstinformation, PRS resources that satisfy a PRS-SRS proximity requirementwith regard to at least one SRS resource identified by the secondinformation; and use the selected PRS resources at least for performingUE Rx-Tx measurements.

Clause 41. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storingcomputer-executable instructions that, when executed by a networkentity, cause the network entity to: transmit, to a user equipment (UE),first information identifying positioning reference signal (PRS)resources; and transmit, to the UE, second information specifying anumber of PRS resources to be used by the UE at least for performing UERx-Tx measurements.

Clause 40. An apparatus comprising a memory, a transceiver, and aprocessor communicatively coupled to the memory and the transceiver, thememory, the transceiver, and the processor configured to perform amethod according to any of clauses 1 to 13.

Clause 41. An apparatus comprising means for performing a methodaccording to any of clauses 1 to 13.

Clause 42. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storingcomputer-executable instructions, the computer-executable comprising atleast one instruction for causing a computer or processor to perform amethod according to any of clauses 1 to 13.

Other aspects include, but are not limited to, the following:

In an aspect, a method of wireless communication performed by a userequipment (UE) includes receiving, from a network entity, informationidentifying positioning reference signal (PRS) resources; receiving,from a base station, information identifying sounding reference signal(SRS) resources; selecting PRS resources based on their proximities intime to SRS resources; and using the selected PRS resources at least forperforming UE Rx-Tx measurements.

In some aspects, reporting results of the Rx-Tx measurements to the basestation, to the network entity, or to both.

In some aspects, the method includes receiving the informationidentifying PRS resources comprises receiving information identifying afirst set of N positioning reference signal (PRS) resources and aparameter M<N; receiving the information identifying SRS resourcescomprises receiving information identifying a second set of at least onesounding reference signal (SRS) resource; selecting PRS resources basedon their proximities to SRS resources comprises: identifying, from thefirst set and the second set, a third set of L PRS-SRS resource pairsthat satisfy a PRS-SRS proximity requirement; defining, from the firstset of N PRS resources, a fourth set of M PRS resources to be consideredfor use for Rx-Tx measurements; and identifying, as a fifth set, PRS-SRSpairs from the third set whose PRS resources is a member of the fourthset; and using the selected PRS resources at least for performing UERx-Tx measurements comprises using the fifth set for Rx-Tx measurements.

In some aspects, the PRS-SRS proximity requirement comprises a maximumtime difference between reception of a PRS and transmission of an SRS.

In some aspects, the maximum time difference is +/−25 milliseconds.

In some aspects, where the PRS-SRS pairs in the fifth set areprioritized according to proximity.

In some aspects, using the fifth set for Rx-Tx measurements comprises:comparing a size K of the fifth set to a PRS processing capability J ofthe UE; upon a determination that K≥J, using the first J PRS-SRS pairsin the fifth set; and upon a determination that K<J, using the PRS-SRSpairs in the fifth set and using J-K additional PRS resources from thefirst set.

In some aspects, J indicates a maximum number of PRS resources that theUE can process at a time.

In some aspects, the network entity comprises a location server.

In some aspects, the location server comprises a location managementfunction (LMF) or a secure user plane location (SUPL) location platform(SLP).

In some aspects, the base station comprises a gNodeB (gNB).

In an aspect, a method of wireless communication performed by a networkentity includes transmitting, to a user equipment (UE), informationidentifying a first set of N positioning reference signal (PRS)resources; and transmitting, to the UE, a parameter M<N specifying anumber of PRS resources to be used by the UE at least for performing UERx-Tx measurements.

In some aspects, the network entity comprises a location server.

In some aspects, the location server comprises a location managementfunction (LMF) or a secure user plane location (SUPL) location platform(SLP).

In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes a memory; at least onetransceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to thememory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processorconfigured to: receive, from a network entity, information identifyingpositioning reference signal (PRS) resources; receive, from a basestation, information identifying sounding reference signal (SRS)resources; select PRS resources based on their proximities in time toSRS resources; and use the selected PRS resources at least forperforming UE Rx-Tx measurements.

In some aspects, the at least one processor is further configured toreport results of the Rx-Tx measurements to the base station, to thenetwork entity, or to both.

In some aspects, the method includes receiving the informationidentifying PRS resources comprises receiving information identifying afirst set of N positioning reference signal (PRS) resources and aparameter M<N; receiving the information identifying SRS resourcescomprises receiving information identifying a second set of at least onesounding reference signal (SRS) resource; and selecting PRS resourcesbased on their proximities to SRS resources comprises: identifying, fromthe first set and the second set, a third set of L PRS-SRS resourcepairs that satisfy a PRS-SRS proximity requirement; defining, from thefirst set of N PRS resources, a fourth set of M PRS resources to beconsidered for use for Rx-Tx measurements; and identifying, as a fifthset, PRS-SRS pairs from the third set whose PRS resources is a member ofthe fourth set; and using the selected PRS resources for Rx-Txmeasurements comprises using the fifth set for Rx-Tx measurements.

In some aspects, the PRS-SRS proximity requirement comprises a maximumtime difference between reception of a PRS and transmission of an SRS.

In some aspects, the maximum time difference is +/−25 milliseconds.

In some aspects, where the PRS-SRS pairs in the fifth set areprioritized according to proximity.

In some aspects, using the fifth set for Rx-Tx measurements comprises:comparing a size K of the fifth set to a PRS processing capability J ofthe UE; upon a determination that K≥J, using the first J PRS-SRS pairsin the fifth set; and upon a determination that K<J, using the PRS-SRSpairs in the fifth set and using J-K additional PRS resources from thefirst set.

In some aspects, J indicates a maximum number of PRS resources that theUE can process at a time.

In some aspects, the network entity comprises a location server.

In some aspects, the location server comprises a location managementfunction (LMF) or a secure user plane location (SUPL) location platform(SLP).

In some aspects, the base station comprises a gNodeB (gNB).

In an aspect, a network entity includes a memory; at least one networkinterface; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to thememory and the at least one network interface, the at least oneprocessor configured to: cause the at least one network interface totransmit, to a user equipment (UE), information identifying a first setof N positioning reference signal (PRS) resources; and cause the atleast one network interface to transmit, to the UE, a parameter M<Nspecifying a number of PRS resources to be used by the UE at least forperforming UE Rx-Tx measurements.

In some aspects, the network entity comprises a location server.

In some aspects, the location server comprises a location managementfunction (LMF) or a secure user plane location (SUPL) location platform(SLP).

In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes means for receiving, from anetwork entity, information identifying positioning reference signal(PRS) resources; means for receiving, from a base station, informationidentifying sounding reference signal (SRS) resources; means forselecting PRS resources based on their proximities in time to SRSresources; and means for using the selected PRS resources at least forperforming UE Rx-Tx measurements.

In an aspect, a network entity includes means for transmitting, to auser equipment (UE), information identifying a first set of Npositioning reference signal (PRS) resources; and means fortransmitting, to the UE, a parameter M<N specifying a number of PRSresources to be used by the UE at least for performing UE Rx-Txmeasurements.

In an aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storingcomputer-executable instructions includes at least one instructioninstructing a user equipment (UE) to receive, from a network entity,information identifying positioning reference signal (PRS) resources; atleast one instruction instructing the UE to receive, from a basestation, information identifying sounding reference signal (SRS)resources; at least one instruction instructing the UE to receive selectPRS resources based on their proximities in time to SRS resources; andat least one instruction instructing the UE to

-   -   receive use the selected PRS resources at least for performing        UE Rx-Tx measurements.

In an aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storingcomputer-executable instructions includes at least one instructioninstructing a network entity to transmit, to a user equipment (UE),information identifying a first set of N positioning reference signal(PRS) resources; and at least one instruction instructing the networkentity to transmit, to the UE, a parameter M<N specifying a number ofPRS resources to be used by the UE at least for performing UE Rx-Txmeasurements.

Those of skill in the art will appreciate that information and signalsmay be represented using any of a variety of different technologies andtechniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information,signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referenced throughout theabove description may be represented by voltages, currents,electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields orparticles, or any combination thereof.

Further, those of skill in the art will appreciate that the variousillustrative logical blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm stepsdescribed in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may beimplemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or combinationsof both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware andsoftware, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits,and steps have been described above generally in terms of theirfunctionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware orsoftware depends upon the particular application and design constraintsimposed on the overall system. Skilled artisans may implement thedescribed functionality in varying ways for each particular application,but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing adeparture from the scope of the present disclosure.

The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits describedin connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be implemented orperformed with a general purpose processor, a DSP, an ASIC, an FPGA, orother programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic,discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed toperform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor maybe a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor may be anyconventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. Aprocessor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices,e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality ofmicroprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSPcore, or any other such configuration.

The methods, sequences and/or algorithms described in connection withthe aspects disclosed herein may be embodied directly in hardware, in asoftware module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two.A software module may reside in random access memory (RAM), flashmemory, read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable ROM (EPROM),electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), registers, hard disk, aremovable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known inthe art. An exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor suchthat the processor can read information from, and write information to,the storage medium. In the alternative, the storage medium may beintegral to the processor. The processor and the storage medium mayreside in an ASIC. The ASIC may reside in a user terminal (e.g., UE). Inthe alternative, the processor and the storage medium may reside asdiscrete components in a user terminal.

In one or more exemplary aspects, the functions described may beimplemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof.If implemented in software, the functions may be stored on ortransmitted over as one or more instructions or code on acomputer-readable medium. Computer-readable media includes both computerstorage media and communication media including any medium thatfacilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. Astorage media may be any available media that can be accessed by acomputer. By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readablemedia can comprise RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical diskstorage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or anyother medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code inthe form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed bya computer. Also, any connection is properly termed a computer-readablemedium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website,server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable,twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologiessuch as infrared, radio, and microwave, then the coaxial cable, fiberoptic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such asinfrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of medium.Disk and disc, as used herein, includes compact disc (CD), laser disc,optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk and Blu-ray discwhere disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproducedata optically with lasers. Combinations of the above should also beincluded within the scope of computer-readable media.

While the foregoing disclosure shows illustrative aspects of thedisclosure, it should be noted that various changes and modificationscould be made herein without departing from the scope of the disclosureas defined by the appended claims. The functions, steps and/or actionsof the method claims in accordance with the aspects of the disclosuredescribed herein need not be performed in any particular order.Furthermore, although elements of the disclosure may be described orclaimed in the singular, the plural is contemplated unless limitation tothe singular is explicitly stated.

1. A method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment(UE), the method comprising: receiving, from a network entity, firstinformation identifying positioning reference signal (PRS) resources;receiving, from a base station, second information identifying soundingreference signal (SRS) resources; selecting, from PRS resourcesidentified by the first information, PRS resources that satisfy aPRS-SRS proximity requirement with regard to at least one SRS resourceidentified by the second information; and using the selected PRSresources at least for performing UE Rx-Tx measurements.
 2. The methodof claim 1, wherein selecting, from the PRS resources identified by thefirst information, the PRS resources that satisfy the PRS-SRS proximityrequirement with regard to the at least one SRS resource identified bythe second information, comprises selecting PRS resources having a timedifference between reception of a PRS and transmission of an SRS thatdoes not exceed a maximum time difference threshold.
 3. The method ofclaim 1, wherein selecting, from the PRS resources identified by thefirst information, the PRS resources that satisfy the PRS-SRS proximityrequirement with regard to the at least one SRS resource identified bythe second information, comprises: selecting, from the PRS resourcesidentified by the first information, a subset of PRS resources accordingto a priority; and selecting, from the subset of PRS resources, PRSresources based on their proximities in time to the at least one SRSresource identified by the second information.
 4. The method of claim 3,wherein selecting, from the PRS resources identified by the firstinformation, the subset of PRS resources according to the prioritycomprises: determining a maximum number M of PRS resources that the UEcan process during a predefined interval of time; and selecting, fromthe PRS resources identified by the first information, an M highestpriority PRS resources as the subset of PRS resources.
 5. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising reporting results of Rx-Tx measurements tothe base station, to the network entity, or to both.
 6. The method ofclaim 1, wherein selecting, from the PRS resources identified by thefirst information, the PRS resources that satisfy the PRS-SRS proximityrequirement with regard to the at least one SRS resource identified bythe second information, comprises: identifying, as a first set and fromthe PRS resources identified by the first information, PRS resources tobe considered for use for Rx-Tx measurements; identifying, as a secondset, one or more PRS-SRS resource pairs that satisfy the PRS-SRSproximity requirement; and identifying, as a third set, PRS resourcesfrom the first set that are part of at least one PRS-SRS resource pairin the second set.
 7. The method of claim 6, wherein identifying, as thesecond set, the one or more PRS-SRS resource pairs that satisfy thePRS-SRS proximity requirement with regard to the at least one SRSresource identified by the second information, further comprisesprioritizing PRS-SRS resource pairs in the second set according toproximity; and wherein identifying, as the third set, PRS resources fromthe first set that are part of the at least one PRS-SRS resource pair inthe second set comprises: determining a maximum number M of PRSresources that the UE can process during a predefined interval of time;upon determining that the third set contains a number of PRS resourcesgreater than or equal to M, selecting a first M PRS resources in thethird set; and upon determining that the third set contains a number Lof PRS resources less than M, selecting the PRS resources in the thirdset and using additional M-L PRS resources from the first set.
 8. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the network entity comprises a locationserver.
 9. The method of claim 8, wherein the location server comprisesa location management function (LMF) or a secure user plane location(SUPL) location platform (SLP).
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein thebase station comprises a gNodeB (gNB).
 11. A method of wirelesscommunication performed by a network entity, the method comprising:transmitting, to a user equipment (UE), first information identifyingpositioning reference signal (PRS) resources; and transmitting, to theUE, second information specifying a number of PRS resources to be usedby the UE at least for performing UE Rx-Tx measurements.
 12. The methodof claim 11, wherein the network entity comprises a location server. 13.The method of claim 12, wherein the location server comprises a locationmanagement function (LMF) or a secure user plane location (SUPL)location platform (SLP).
 14. A user equipment (UE), comprising: amemory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processorcommunicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver,the at least one processor configured to: receive, via the at least onetransceiver, from a network entity, first information identifyingpositioning reference signal (PRS) resources; receive, via the at leastone transceiver, from a base station, second information identifyingsounding reference signal (SRS) resources; select, from PRS resourcesidentified by the first information, PRS resources that satisfy aPRS-SRS proximity requirement with regard to at least one SRS resourceidentified by the second information; and use the selected PRS resourcesat least for performing UE Rx-Tx measurements.
 15. The UE of claim 14,wherein, to select, from the PRS resources identified by the firstinformation, the PRS resources that satisfy the PRS-SRS proximityrequirement with regard to the at least one SRS resource identified bythe second information, the at least one processor is configured toselect PRS resources having a time difference between reception of a PRSand transmission of an SRS that does not exceed a maximum timedifference threshold.
 16. The UE of claim 14, wherein, to select, fromthe PRS resources identified by the first information, the PRS resourcesthat satisfy the PRS-SRS proximity requirement with regard to the atleast one SRS resource identified by the second information, the atleast one processor is configured to: select, from the PRS resourcesidentified by the first information, a subset of PRS resources accordingto a priority; and select, from the subset of PRS resources, PRSresources based on their proximities in time to the at least one SRSresource identified by the second information.
 17. The UE of claim 16,wherein selecting, from the PRS resources identified by the firstinformation, the subset of PRS resources according to the prioritycomprises: determine a maximum number M of PRS resources that the UE canprocess during a predefined interval of time; and select, from the PRSresources identified by the first information, an M highest priority PRSresources as the subset of PRS resources.
 18. The UE of claim 14,wherein the at least one processor is further configured to reportingresults of Rx-Tx measurements to the base station, to the networkentity, or to both.
 19. The UE of claim 14, wherein, to select, from thePRS resources identified by the first information, the PRS resourcesthat satisfy the PRS-SRS proximity requirement with regard to the atleast one SRS resource identified by the second information, the atleast one processor is configured to: identify, as a first set and fromthe PRS resources identified by the first information, PRS resources tobe considered for use for Rx-Tx measurements; identify, as a second set,one or more PRS-SRS resource pairs that satisfy the PRS-SRS proximityrequirement; and identify, as a third set, PRS resources from the firstset that are part of at least one PRS-SRS resource pair in the secondset.
 20. The UE of claim 19, wherein, to identify, as the second set,the one or more PRS-SRS resource pairs that satisfy the PRS-SRSproximity requirement with regard to the at least one SRS resourceidentified by the second information, the at least one processor isconfigured to prioritize the one or more PRS-SRS resource pairs in thesecond set according to proximity; and wherein, to identify, as thethird set, the PRS resources from the first set that are part of the atleast one PRS-SRS resource pair in the second set, the at least oneprocessor is configured to: determine a maximum number M of PRSresources that the UE can process during a predefined interval of time;upon determining that the third set contains a number of PRS resourcesgreater than or equal to M, select a first M PRS resources in the thirdset; and upon determining that the third set contains a number L of PRSresources less than M, select the PRS resources in the third set andusing additional M-L PRS resources from the first set.
 21. The UE ofclaim 14, wherein the network entity comprises a location server. 22.The UE of claim 21, wherein the location server comprises a locationmanagement function (LMF) or a secure user plane location (SUPL)location platform (SLP).
 23. The UE of claim 14, wherein the basestation comprises a gNodeB (gNB).
 24. A network entity, comprising: amemory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processorcommunicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver,the at least one processor configured to: transmit, via the at least onetransceiver, to a user equipment (UE), first information identifyingpositioning reference signal (PRS) resources; and transmit, via the atleast one transceiver, to the UE, second information specifying a numberof PRS resources to be used by the UE at least for performing UE Rx-Txmeasurements.
 25. The network entity of claim 24, wherein the networkentity comprises a location server.
 26. The network entity of claim 25,wherein the location server comprises a location management function(LMF) or a secure user plane location (SUPL) location platform (SLP).27-41. (canceled)